User:HAL(Old)/Don't Vandalize!

Vandalism is an increasing problem on Wikipedia, from the occasional word insertion, to the page blanking. Vandalism is considered a taboo practice on Wikipedia. Vandalism brings many bad things, not only does it hurt the project, but it hurts the vandal as well, as repeat offenders are often blocked or sometimes even banned. Which makes everyone think: "Why?". What motivates a vandal? Many things... but really, it all comes down to one single point: Don't Vandalize! Vandalism is a futile effort, and hopefully you will begin to see why.

Common Vandalism
Vandalism comes in many forms, from the page blank, to the insertion of a profane word, to replacing facts in the article with utter nonsense, or facts that sound real, but are not.

Page Blanking:
Page blanking is a very common form of vandalism, usually resulting in the entire page, or most of the page, being blanked, and either being left that way, or writing a short comment, or a long one that is utter nonsense. This is easily corrected by a simple revert, and a warning (or if it is a multiple offense, a block/ban) will be issued.

Word Insertion:
Word insertion is a bit harder to pick out, but is almost always noticed eventually. This usually does not require a revert, as it is a simple edit, but a revert can be done if it was the most recent edit. If it was not the most recent edit, the vandalism will need to be manually fixed, by checking the history of the page to find the real word, or doing some investigation on one's own. A warning/block/ban will be issued, and Wikipedia will continue.

Fact Replacement:
Fact replacement causes a lot of problems, as it can go unrealized for months on end, causing many mistakes. Fact replacement is usually when someone replaces a bit of information (i.e a date of an important event, an important person, company name, etc.) with something that is not true. Even though this is a hard bit of vandalism to pick out, it is almost always picked out eventually, a warning/block/ban is issued.

Different Types:
There are, of course, many other forms of vandalism, like personal attacks, image spamming, regular spamming, etc. They are all bad, and are always removed and warnings are issued.

Why Vandalize?
Motivations for vandalism vary, and mostly it boils down to attention grabbing, tests of the Wikipedia system, proving a point, an anger vent, or just someone trying to be mean... Motivation is never clear, since most Good faith editors can't even imagine why someone would vandalize anything.

Penalties of Vandalism
Vandalism isn't good for the vandal! By vandalizing, he or she causes many problems for the project, BUT ALSO FOR THEMSELVES! Vandalism will set up a bad name for the vandal, and not only that, potentially prevent them from editing the project!

Warnings:
If vandalism is removed, it will most likely be accompanied by a warning. A vandalism warning consists of 5 levels, 1 being a kind notice, 2 being a stern notice, 3 being a warning, 4 being a stern final warning, and 4im (or 5) being an immediate only warning. After 4 warnings, or a 4im is given, any more vandalism from the account will result in a block. Warnings are displayed publicly on the vandals talk page, for everyone to see. Repeat vandals set up a bad name for themselves, and people may not be so easily friendly, even if the vandal has turned over a new leaf, people may be a bit skeptical to trust them.

Bad names:
After vandalizing multiple times, or coming back after a block, a vandal may not be welcomed back so easily into the community. Even though everyone is supposed to Assume good faith, they may not. By vandalizing, the user now must prove themselves to the community before they may be let back in fully. The user may also be put on probation, or a forced mentorship, which means they will be watched closely by wikipedians and administrators.

Blocks and Bans:
The final result in a vandalism case is, unfortunately, blocking and/or banning. Two very undesirable positions for a Wikipedian.

Block:
A block will usually be issued after the user has received 4 warnings. Unless it is a registered account that is OBVIOUSLY a vandalism only account, it will most likely be short block. Blocks will eventually increase until it reaches an indefinite block (Anonymous IPs cannot be indef-blocked, but can receive extremely long blocks). Indefinite blocks never expire, and a user must appeal the block, which may or may not be approved. Nobody likes to be blocked, and it is an extremely bad position to be in. A ban is worse then a block, and appeals must be approved by the Arbitration committee.

Don't Vandalize!
Don't vandalize! Vandalism is bad, nobody likes a vandal, and nothing is gained by vandalizing! So don't do it! Vandalism is a futile effort, and it hurts the vandal, the project, and many innocents as well.

See also:
Wikipedia Vandalism-- Wikipedia's main vandalism article, including policies and guidelines.

User Warnings -- Wikipedia's User Warnings project, with policies for dealing out warnings and such.

The motivation of a vandal -- An essay on why vandals vandalize.