Forum:Multiple account policy
The Sims Wiki currently has a brief entry in its general policies devoted to "sock puppetry"; that is, the deliberate use of multiple accounts. For several reasons, I am proposing that we spin this policy off into its own dedicated policy, which I am tentatively proposing as the multiple account policy.
My proposed policy can be viewed at User:LostInRiverview/MAP.
This proposal does a few key things. First, it puts the Sockpuppet policy onto its own page, so it is easier to find and link to, as opposed to linking to a specific point on the General Policies page. It also explicitly defines sockpuppet as a bad faith use of multiple accounts, and outlines more clearly the process by which a good faith alternate account can be approved. In fact, the definition of sockpuppet in the proposed policy is the only major change from current wiki policies and general practices.
I felt it was important to give a formal definition to what sockpuppetry is and, more importantly, what it is not. Most definitions of the term that I've read elsewhere, such as on Wikipedia's page on the topic, apply the term sockpuppetry specifically to bad faith usage of multiple accounts, while our policy applied the term to all uses of multiple accounts. Since the term itself is a loaded one, I think it's best to reserve its usage only for instances of bad faith usage, in order to avoid stigmatizing users who are acting in good faith and either accidentally violate the policy or seek to get an approved multiple account.
Aside from this, the proposed policy is, I think, pretty much in line with current policy and established practices. I'd love to hear what you all have to say about it, or if you have any suggested changes. -- LiR talk · blog · contribs 05:18, December 23, 2016 (UTC)
Discussion[edit source]
A good start. I do have some suggested changes, though:
- Regarding the part about bots, I do not think the operator of an unapproved bot should be blocked unless they were using the bot maliciously and in bad faith, much like I had drafted in Forum:Bot policy (Yeah, I'll write up a formal policy page for it soon, just need to stop procrastinating on everything). Bots that are editing unapproved but in good faith should be "soft-blocked" to avoid affecting the bot operator; a bot editing maliciously should be "hard-blocked".
- I would suggest mentioning more exceptions to the multiple accounts rule, many of which are based off of Wikipedia's sockpuppetry policy:
- Users should be allowed to create and use an alternate account for security, such as when they use a public computer. The idea is that, if this account gets compromised, the main account is safe, which can be useful for users with advanced permissions. The userpage of the alternate account should make it clear that it is an alternate account, and link to the userpage of the main account. This alternate account cannot hold any special privileges; it's OK for it to have rollback (provided the main account has rollback as well) but it cannot have any moderator or administrator user rights.
- Users should be allowed to have doppelgänger accounts. A doppelgänger account is an account that is created preemptively to prevent impersonation. It usually has a username that is similar to the main account. It can also be used to "reserve" a username for future use, provided that it is highly unlikely that someone else would want to use it. For example, I operate User:K6kaBOT on Wikia, but I do not operate any bots on Wikipedia or any Wikimedia project. To prevent unwanted impersonation, I created wikipedia:User:K6kaBOT preemptively in order to prevent impersonation, and I have also "reserved" the username in case I want to operate a bot in the future. Doppelgängers should not be used for editing (They can be soft-blocked, as was the case for my Wikipedia doppelgänger account) and must be linked to the main account.
- Accounts used for testing and training: Sometimes it's better to perform tests on another account -- preferably on a test wiki, but depending on the circumstances it may need to be done specifically on The Sims Wiki; for example, it can be used to test a tool or interface to see how it appears to others. It may also be desirable to use an alternate account to take screenshots with, such as for a help page. These accounts should be linked to the main account and generally should not edit the mainspace.
- Alternate accounts from other wikis: Not all wikis on Wikia have policies on using multiple accounts, and those that do usually don't have the same ones as ours. It is possible that another wiki permits alternate accounts for a purpose that we don't allow, or perhaps it is an alternate account used on a test wiki. These accounts should be left alone unless they are used to edit The Sims Wiki; the owner should be encouraged to link the two accounts. This doesn't apply, however, if the main account is blocked on The Sims Wiki, or if the accounts are used maliciously.
- I think there should be a longer description as to what meatpuppetry is. Wikipedia has its own section regarding meatpuppetry and also mentions that consensus is determined by discussion and valid arguments, not by votes; thus, meatpuppetry is useless in altering consensus.
—k6ka 🍁 (Talk · Contributions) 02:37, December 28, 2016 (UTC)
- Responding specifically to your points...
- 1. That's a fair point, and I will probably edit the draft to reflect that. The truth is, the bot portion of the MAP is purposefully vague because the Bot Policy is still up in the air and I didn't want to write in something that blatantly contradicts any possible policy that may be rolling out in the near future.
- 2. When I wrote the draft, I wanted to keep the policy as close as practical to currently-accepted standards and practices. Alternate accounts have not really come up frequently on The Sims Wiki so it's hard to include a list of valid multiple uses without it seeming like such a list is artificially exclusive. Ultimately I'd seek to set the policy so that multiple accounts used in good faith are not automatically assumed to be bad and treated hostilely. This might mean including a "catch-all" line, to the tune of something like "Alternate accounts for other purposes that are used in good faith may be allowed with administrative approval." But that's depending on whether we want direct administrative oversight over all multiple account usages regardless of purpose. The reason I am leaning towards that is because that has been the prevailing method of admins on TSW; multiple accounts here in practice need approval, whereas on Wikipedia they may be created without necessarily getting admin oversight.
- 3. The concept of meatpuppetry isn't one that's often brought up here on the wiki, so I felt that including it as an aside in the policy language was good enough.