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There are many user access levels on Wikipedia. The most common are anonymous users identified by their IP, logged-in users, and administrators. There are several more restricted access levels: bureaucrat, checkuser, oversight, and stewards.
Users are restricted from sensitive actions that might harm the project if anyone could do them. Thus, anonymous users cannot edit semi-protected pages, and non-admins cannot delete articles. Admins, a large group with more than 1,000 members, cannot view the sensitive information contained in the checkuser logs or the hidden "oversight" revisions.
However, the limited number of bureaucrats is more to ensure social harmony than to prevent obviously harmful activity. Bureaucrats have three special roles:
- Bot flagging
Changing usernames- Promoting users to administrators
The pages associated with each task are linked on the Bureaucrats' noticeboard.
There is nothing particularly difficult about bot flagging or changing usernames. The only difficult task of a bureaucrat is to evaluate requests for adminship to determine community consensus. Most RFAs are obvious yeas or nays; a case comes within the bureaucrats' discretion once or twice a year.
It is important that a bureaucrat has the confidence of the community to make critical decisions that may help or harm the project for months to come. However, many experienced administrators, who have participated in the RFA process and in the efforts to evaluate and reform it, have acquired this judgment and maturity. So why are their applications to become a bureaucrat being turned away?