User talk:WKUser06

ONLY for Redux, not others.

Sub: Imp. request for help concerning IP Privacy.

Hello,

I am kind of a new occassional user to Wikipedia. Just started editing and saving on a whim one day via google. The thing is that I was using my static IP which is 219DOT91DOT203DOT71 ( DOT = . ) Now I am quite concerned about my privacy and Real Life issues as I have realized that my above static ip is searchable via google and wiki! I was not aware that IP is stored for ever on wiki which is quite unique on the Internet!

Also, as an occassional contributor, I was not aware about what wiki really was, I just thought that people could just come and write whatever they wanted and others too could change and write what they wanted in it and save it so others could view it.

To make a longish story short, got introduced to new messages, warnings, warnings about warnings, only facts, WK:Civil even in third party private talks etc. via admins and others. I do regret using harsh words or if I offended anyone, but no malice was intended. I thought I was just reacting against people who I thought were being too smart, inconsiderate and harsh and unfair and wrong in their use of power etc. especially because I was sort of a new user not knowing the rules etc. But anyway, atleast by me, its all a thing of the past. Wiki indeed is a highly controlled and regulated environment with lots of rules for everything!

In any case, I am concerned about privacy issues and RL issues vis-a-vis my ip address and its related content on wiki and it being searchable via google and wiki, as the results thrown up by google wrt my IP are not wanted by me at all.

Please help me wipe out any traces of my IP or any connection with articles or accounts or talk pages.

The thing is that my ip was also used by users and admins in their headings and user talk pages to communicate to each other. The total people roughly cannot be more than 6-8 I think, and the total edits related to my ip, be it mine or others, cannot be more than around approx. 80-90 I think, including contributions et al.

Can you just delete my IP page, IP user talk page, its history, all the IP related messages, the mention of my IP on others user pages etc or replace all the occurences of my IP with another account? Should I go to each user and admins and other pages and delete or replace my ip with another account? Is that allowed? Can anyone object? I do not mind full deletion of any messages relating to the ip account, be it either my messages or others' messages. Or can it all be shifted to another of my created account without any obvious link to my ip and then archived?

Full disclosure of created accounts:

NewbieCOMMAlearning ( COMMA = , ) - my first account which I created after some kind people advised, used it a little. I had started using this account and stopped using my ip account but due to continued "communication" with some ppl on the IP page, I had to continue using my IP. This also got linked to my ip now in some talk page message so i cant use it anymore.

AristotleCOMMAlaughing - never used. CAN BE DELETED. Same thing, linked with IP.

WKUser061 - Could not log in after creation. Never used. CAN BE DELETED.

And this one from where I am writing.

I am aware of the sockpuppet thing and can assure u that the accounts were never ever intended for any wrong thing. Just somehow all the accounts got linked to my IP so I had to create new ones!

I would like to create a new final account so that I can start a fresh talk page and so that my underlying static IP is not disclosed or linked to the account.

Sorry that this message is long.

Would greatly appreciate it if you could help me in cleaning my IP address and its related content off wiki and google. I am aware, in hindsight, I should have created an account right away, but I thought as a then very occassional contributor, it was not really necessary at the time.

Please advise what would be the best thing to be done, and I dont mind if you go ahead and do it if you can.

Please respond on this user talk page itself.

Thanks and regards.

WKUser06 06:20, 2 August 2006 (UTC)

Ok, let's take this one step at a time. First, about your IP being registered on Wikipedia. The first step to fixing this is that you select an account that you'd like to use from now on and start editing from it exclusively. To prevent any problems with accusations of sockpuppetry, and assuming that you would not use the other accounts you had created, you could place a tag in their user pages identifying them as socks of yours (linking to your new username, not your IP). As a gesture of good faith towards the people with whom you had problems, you could request that those accounts be blocked indefinitely. Once you've done that, you will have established a fix identity for yourself on Wikipedia, which is important if you do not wish to be linked to your IP address anymore.
After you've cleared this situation — but not before, or you might end up being reverted by others and even blocked, if an admin perceives your actions as trying to hide bad behavior: it is of paramount importance to clear the air with the users with whom you've had problems, assuming that they were all acting in good faith — you can take steps to move the current talk page for your IP address to the talk page of your new account (using the "move" tab at the right-hand side of your screen). Once that is done, and also as a gesture to demonstrate that it is not your intention to hide the past, you can replace the IP signature in your comments with your new signature (but don't replace the timestamps: change only the username - use three tildes to add your name only, without a new timestamp). Only do that if you are positive that this IP is not shared with other people, since when you move the talk page, it will be turned into a redirect to your user talk page -- later, you can request that an Administrator delete this redirect, so as to dissociate your IP from your account completely.
As far as other users having used your IP address in communications between themselves, you should know that, in time, those threads get archived, i.e., they are removed from the main talk pages, so any information about your IP would soon be out of immediate sight. Almost every user on Wikipedia, even those who have been registered for a long time, have edited anonymously when they first came to Wikipedia. But with some time, it becomes very difficult to find which were their IPs.
Does that cover all your concerns? Redux 23:40, 2 August 2006 (UTC)