English

Code Membership Inference for Detecting Unauthorized Data Use in Code Pre-trained Language Models

Software Engineering 2025-02-19 v2

Abstract

Code pre-trained language models (CPLMs) have received great attention since they can benefit various tasks that facilitate software development and maintenance. However, CPLMs are trained on massive open-source code, raising concerns about potential data infringement. This paper launches the study of detecting unauthorized code use in CPLMs, i.e., Code Membership Inference (CMI) task. We design a framework Buzzer for different settings of CMI. Buzzer deploys several inference techniques, including signal extraction from pre-training tasks, hard-to-learn sample calibration and weighted inference, to identify code membership status accurately. Extensive experiments show that CMI can be achieved with high accuracy using Buzzer. Hence, Buzzer can serve as a CMI tool and help protect intellectual property rights.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2312.07200,
  title  = {Code Membership Inference for Detecting Unauthorized Data Use in Code Pre-trained Language Models},
  author = {Sheng Zhang and Hui Li},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2312.07200},
  year   = {2025}
}
R2 v1 2026-06-28T13:48:17.958Z