Status: Known Issue
Affected Feature: Repetitive Activity Alarms
Affected Agent Versions: Windows Agent 8.6.7 and 9.0
Some accounts on Windows Agent versions 8.6.7 and 9.0 may experience an elevated number of Repetitive Activity (PFA) alarms, including consecutive back-to-back alarm entries for a single user session.
What's happening
Recent improvements to PFA (Potential False Activity) detection in these Agent versions increased sensitivity to repetitive inputs. In a subset of cases, this has revealed a hardware-related edge case in which certain input devices emit a continuous stream of input signals. This happens most frequently with gaming peripherals (mouse/controller) and certain built-in laptop trackpads. When this occurs, the Agent may continuously log the session as repetitive activity even while the user is actively working, preventing their status from returning to active and generating back-to-back PFA alarm entries.
This behavior is specific to the Repetitive Activity alarm and is driven by device-level input rather than by ActivTrak's measurement of user activity.
What this looks like in the Activity Log
In a false-positive scenario (highlighted in yellow in the screenshot below), the user is actively switching between applications every few seconds or minutes — which would normally indicate legitimate activity — but the Description column still shows "Repetitive Activity Detected - artificial input pattern detected" for every entry. The time since first detection keeps incrementing (10 minutes, 11 minutes, 12 minutes, etc.) rather than resetting, even as the user moves between different tabs and tools.
Who is affected
This issue affects a subset of users on Windows Agent 8.6.7 and 9.0 who have the Repetitive Activity alarm configured. Not all accounts or devices will experience this behavior. We recommend that affected users update any peripheral drivers, replace batteries, and avoid using gaming peripherals as input devices
What to do
If you are seeing an unusual increase in PFA alarms or persistent back-to-back repetitive activity entries, please contact ActivTrak Support. A mitigation is available and can be applied to your account on request. The mitigation can help prevent back-to-back PFAs, but the Agent will still detect the continuous stream of input and may inflate active time if this input occurs when the user is not actively working.
ActivTrak Academy
Learn how to configure Potential False Activity alarms, investigate alerts, and measure impact over time. The Detecting False Activity certification covers the full workflow from setup to action. Start learning →