Wikipedia:Protecting children's privacy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This is an essay; it contains the advice and/or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. It is not a policy or guideline, and editors are not obliged to follow it. |
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An earlier version of this page was proposed as a policy or guideline but did not gain consensus. |
Based on final decision of Arbitration Committee in Wikipedia:Requests for arbitration/Protecting children's privacy, December 5, 2006.
Reasonable measures which forestall the drama associated with interactions between naive children, adult predators, and sting operations by law enforcement are appropriate.
All users, including children, are permitted to edit anonymously without submitting identifying information. Reasonable efforts to discourage children from disclosing identifying personal information are appropriate.
Users who seriously disrupt Wikipedia may be banned. Users who self-identify as children, project a sexually tinged persona, and disclose personal information such as links to sites devoted to social interaction are engaging in disruptive behavior and may be banned. Note that self-identified children may in fact be adults posing as children for a variety of reasons.
When a user self-identifies as a child, especially if they provide personal information, the matter is frequently a subject of discussion among administrators. Sometimes the user is immature and ends up being blocked for disruption. If they are not disruptive, personal information may be removed and the user advised as shown below.
[edit] Response
Users who disrupt Wikipedia by posing as children, projecting a provocative persona, and disclosing personal information may be banned on a case by case basis.
Users who appear to be children editing in good faith who disclose identifying personal information should be informed of the potential dangers of such disclosure. They should be advised that disclosing personal information is a bad idea and is potentially dangerous. Deletion and oversight may be used in appropriate cases to remove the information.
