User:Arrowsmith/Sock puppetry

This is a draft policy proposal for the GuildWiki.

A sock puppet is an additional username used by an editor who edits under more than one name. The editor who uses a sock puppet may be called a sock puppeteer. Use of sock puppets is discouraged in most cases.

The reason for discouraging sock puppets is to prevent abuses such as a person voting more than once in a poll, or using multiple accounts to circumvent Policy. Some people feel that second accounts should not be used at all; others feel it is harmless if the accounts are all behaving acceptably.

Multiple accounts have legitimate uses. But you must refrain from using them in any way prohibited to sock puppets and from using one account to support the position of another, the standard definition of sock puppetry. If someone uses multiple accounts, it is recommended that he or she provides links between the accounts, so it is easy to determine that they are shared by one individual.

Voting
The GuildWiki uses a "one person, one vote" principle for all votes and similar discussions where individual preferences are counted in any fashion. Accordingly, sock puppets may not be used to give the impression of more support for a viewpoint. This includes voting multiple times in any nomination, or using more than one account in swaying consensus or a vote. Proven sock puppets may be permanently blocked if used in this manner.

Deception and impersonation
In addition to double-voting, sock puppets should not be used for purposes of deception, or to create the illusion of broader support for a position. This kind of behavior is disruptive and unnecessary for any potentially legitimate use of sock puppets.

Circumventing policy
Policies apply per person, not per account. Policies such as 1RV are for each person's edits. Similarly, using a second account for policy violations will cause any penalties to also be applied to your main account.

Users who are banned from editing or temporarily subject to a legitimate block may not use sock puppets to circumvent this. Evading a ban in this manner causes the timer on the ban to restart, and may further lengthen the ban.

Legitimate uses of multiple accounts
Multiple accounts have legitimate uses.

Account name changes
If an editor changes his account name for any reason, the new account is not considered a sock puppet of the old account if all the following conditions are met.


 * There is a prominent redirection from the old account to the new account.
 * There are no further edits made from the old account.

There are several reasons why an editor may change his account name. He may have forgotten his password for the old account and be unable to retrieve it. He may have grown to dislike his old account name and wish for a new one. He may be affected by one of the several bugs that plague the GuildWiki.

To completely remove any chance of sockpuppetry, an editor may request a permanent block to be placed on his old account.

Role accounts
Administrators may choose to separate their role from their user account to clearly distinguish which actions they take in their official capacity, and which actions they consider to be equal to the activities of a normal editor.

Bot accounts
A few editors run bots to help with various menial editorial tasks. These bots are usually in their separate account that is flagged as a bot to hide its edits from the recent changes.