 | This page is an essay, containing guidance from the Wikimedia Foundation Legal team. Essays are not Wikipedia policies or guidelines. For the response of the Wikipedia Arbitration Committee, see Response to the Wikimedia Foundation statement on paid editing and outing. |
Investigation of undisclosed paid editing on Wikipedia often requires a search for information about an editor outside-Wikipedia. Information such as listings on job sites, real identities listed on a company website, or a link between a username and an identity on a third-party website can all provide evidence that an editor is engaging on Wikipedia in areas where they have a conflict of interest. A transparent, public record of these investigations allows users to draw links between connected paid editors, expose repeat offenders, and ensure that investigations are being conducted with integrity.
On the other hand, the English Wikipedia's harassment policy states that personal information about an editor should not be disclosed on Wikipedia, that even discussing a person's other pseudonyms may be controversial, and that in the case of investigating issues such as undisclosed paid editing or conflicts of interest, the information should be privately emailed to investigators such as admins, functionaries, arbcom, or the Wikimedia Foundation.
The combination of the outing policy and the needs of effective undisclosed paid editing investigation currently create a conflict: dedicated users who identify and post links between a Wikipedia account and a paid editor would like guidance to avoid violating the outing policy.