Device Control: Per-Course Limits That Stop Account Sharing

Account sharing is the silent revenue killer of online courses. A student buys your $200 course, then shares their login with five friends — each of whom would have paid $200. You've lost $1,000 from a single sale. Industry data suggests 20-30% of paid course revenue is lost to account sharing, making it by far the most common form of "piracy." Unlike video piracy (which requires technical skills to record and share), account sharing is trivial — anyone can do it, and most students don't even realize it's wrong. Ukkera's Device Control — Per-Course Limits & Approval feature stops account sharing without inconveniencing legitimate students.

Per-Course Limits — Different Limits for Different Courses

Unlike most LMS platforms that enforce account-level limits only (e.g., "2 devices per account"), Ukkera lets you set per-course limits: 2 devices for a $500 premium course, 3 for a $50 standard course, 1 for a high-stakes certification exam. This per-course granularity recognizes that different courses have different piracy risk profiles. A $500 premium course justifies tighter limits; a $50 introductory course can be more permissive. The same student can have 2 devices for Course A and 3 devices for Course B, each tracked independently — no conflict, no confusion.

Students Hit a Clear Limit Wall — Not a Silent Failure

When a student tries to access a course from an unregistered device and hits the limit, they don't get a confusing error message or a silent failure. They see a clear, friendly screen explaining the situation: "You've reached your device limit for this course (2 of 2 devices registered). To access from this device, remove an old device or request instructor approval." Two buttons: "Remove an old device" (self-service — they pick which device to remove) or "Request approval" (escalates to you). This clear UX turns a potentially frustrating situation into a manageable one.

Self-Service Device Removal — No Support Tickets

Most device limit hits are legitimate: a student upgraded their phone, got a new laptop, or wants to study from their tablet instead. For these cases, Ukkera's self-service device removal lets students remove their own old devices with one click — no support ticket, no waiting for you to respond. The student sees a list of their registered devices ("iPhone 13 — last used 2 days ago," "MacBook Pro — last used 1 week ago"), picks the one to remove, and the new device is registered instantly. This self-service approach handles 80% of device limit situations without any instructor involvement.

Approval Queue — You Decide on Edge Cases

For the 20% of cases where self-service doesn't apply (student lost their phone, wants to study from a friend's computer, needs a 3rd device for genuine reasons), the approval queue lets you decide. You see the request with full context: student name, course, requested device info (OS, browser, approximate location), and the student's optional note explaining why they need access. Approve or deny with one click — approval instantly registers the new device, denial sends the student a polite message. Most instructors handle these requests within a few hours, which keeps students happy without compromising security.

Instant Revocation — Remove a Device in Seconds

When you need to revoke a device immediately — a student reports their phone stolen, you suspect account sharing, or a chargeback comes through — Ukkera lets you remove any device with one click. The removed device loses access within seconds: any active sessions are terminated, any downloaded content becomes unplayable, and any attempt to log in from that device is blocked. This instant revocation is critical for security incidents where every minute of delay means more content leakage. The audit trail records who revoked which device and when, so you have a complete history of access changes.

Full Audit Trail — Every Device Change Logged

Every device registration, removal, and approval is logged in an audit trail with timestamp, actor (student or instructor), device info, and reason. This trail is invaluable for resolving disputes: if a student claims they never shared their account, you can show them exactly when their account was accessed from 5 different devices in 3 different cities. If a chargeback comes through, you have evidence that the student accessed the course from their registered devices. The audit trail protects both you and legitimate students — it makes account sharing provable rather than he-said-she-said.