Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/MikePlant1/Archive

Suspected sockpuppets



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Four overlapping SPAs focusing almost entirely on the work of Mario Cerrito, backing each other up at the biography's two AfDs (1, 2), along with some IP !voters (one of which appears to be CaliforniaWave from this "Hello Jimmy!", "Thanks Jimmy!" conversation). User:MikePlant1 has an odd edit history, steadily promoting Cerrito for two years before (so far as I can see from logs) suddenly making four abusive edits about Cerrito at 3am one night, and being indef blocked for it.

Both CaliforniaWave and MovieManNJ84 have used a capslock KEEP and an argument about having worked with Renoly Santiago, in AfD comments (1, 2). CaliforniaWave once blanked a Cerrito AfD of all content except the !votes from MikePlant1, RedNecker13 and themselves. McGeddon (talk) 12:16, 27 December 2016 (UTC)

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The following accounts are a ✅ match to each other: The following account is a match to the previous group:
 * - Please compare and  - the rest are . Thanks,  GABgab 00:53, 3 January 2017 (UTC)
 * Salvio Let's talk about it! 14:36, 3 January 2017 (UTC)
 * - Please block those accounts. Thanks, GABgab 23:48, 3 January 2017 (UTC)
 * GeneralizationsAreBad - ✅  ~Oshwah~  (talk) (contribs)   23:49, 3 January 2017 (UTC)
 * Could you also block CaliforniaWave? Thanks, GABgab 23:51, 3 January 2017 (UTC)
 * GeneralizationsAreBad - ✅  ~Oshwah~  (talk) (contribs)   23:52, 3 January 2017 (UTC)


 * Thanks again, Oshwah. Tagged and closing. GABgab 23:53, 3 January 2017 (UTC)

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Two more promotional Mario Cerrito SPAs. MovieWatcher33 created an article about Cerrito's film The Listing and has a similar username to past socks MovieManNJ84 and MovieMan13. TexasIndie45 has a similar username to past sock IndieFilmGuru, and created a biography at Mario J. Cerrito III (adding a "J." to the AfD'd Mario Cerrito III), relisting him as a notable resident of Audubon, New Jersey as MikePlant1 had done (1, 2) McGeddon (talk) 10:33, 16 January 2017 (UTC)

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The newer biography is a near-perfect match to the old one, and the film article reuses the same citations as the deleted biographies. I think it's obvious we're dealing with promotional sock puppets here. I've blocked and tagged both. NinjaRobotPirate (talk) 14:42, 17 January 2017 (UTC)

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Similar naming convention to last set of socks and recreation of many times deleted articles Mario Cerrito III Mario J. Cerrito III etc...which have been speedied and afd'd. Chrissymad  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  15:39, 7 February 2017 (UTC)

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 * Blocked User:Bullets33 on the behavioral evidence: SPA recreating the Mario Cerrito article. Also salted the current variations of the article. — Cactus Writer (talk) 16:28, 7 February 2017 (UTC)

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Yet another Mario Cerrito 3 creation. Chrissymad ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  19:35, 9 February 2017 (UTC)

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 * - Quack! See these versions of the article: . Please block the account. Thanks, GABgab 15:11, 10 February 2017 (UTC)
 * Ks0stm (T•C•G•E) 15:25, 10 February 2017 (UTC)
 * Tagged and closing. GABgab 16:04, 10 February 2017 (UTC)

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Quack quack. Another Mario Cerrito creation. Chrissymad ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  15:42, 11 February 2017 (UTC)

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 * - GABgab 15:58, 11 February 2017 (UTC)
 * Ks0stm (T•C•G•E) 17:26, 11 February 2017 (UTC)
 * Their technical data is relatively all over the place, but when taken as a whole and considering a few key details:
 * ✅, by confirming
 * to
 * , one of their previous socks from the archive
 * Given how their technical data is relatively all over the place behavioral evidence is going to be the primary tool to confirm socks of this master in the future, but if it's hazy there are a few technical details that can be used to seal the deal.  Ks0stm  (T•C•G•E) 17:38, 11 February 2017 (UTC)
 * Socks tagged and closing. TDL (talk) 01:11, 12 February 2017 (UTC)

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Quacky quack, Mario J Cerrito is back. Yeryry (talk) 23:24, 9 March 2017 (UTC)

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 * - . GABgab 01:38, 10 March 2017 (UTC)
 * . Also, article deleted and salted. NinjaRobotPirate (talk) 01:59, 10 March 2017 (UTC)

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loud quacking + a duck username. CHRISSY MAD ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  15:38, 24 April 2017 (UTC)

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 * Blocked, thanks. — k6ka  🍁 ( Talk ·  Contributions ) 16:05, 24 April 2017 (UTC)

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 * Another SPA account focused exclusively on recreating Mario Cerrito page: Mario Cerrito iii, Deadly Gamble, inserting the copyvio image uploaded by MikePlant1 (that had been deleted back in 2015), adding Mario Cerrito name to towns, , etc. —  Cactus Writer (talk) 02:05, 29 September 2017 (UTC)


 * IP:173.61.209.205 is an SPA address that uploaded photo and geolocates to the SPA IPs in previous iterations of Mario Cerrito III page (e.g. 72.82.172.116,   72.82.175.185, 72.82.161.225) —  Cactus Writer (talk) 16:59, 29 September 2017 (UTC)

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173.61.209.205 is Jugger21i editing while logged out. The IP added the image that Jugger21i uploaded to Commons, and they both claim that the image is their own work. —&thinsp;JJMC89&thinsp; (T·C) 20:41, 29 September 2017 (UTC)

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 * Jugger21i blocked as a suspected sock. The IP blocked for 3 days. Closing. Callanecc (talk • contribs • logs) 22:19, 7 October 2017 (UTC)

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Recreation of Mario Joseph Cerrito and Mario Joseph Cerrito 3rd CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  15:08, 12 November 2017 (UTC)

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 * so, closing. TonyBallioni (talk) 15:20, 12 November 2017 (UTC)

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And so it continues...Cerrito Productions (Film), Cerrito Productions (Movie) CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  18:06, 5 December 2017 (UTC)

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 * , it might just be someone he paid to do it, but that is covered by WP:PROXYING, so the same sanctions apply. Closing. A clerk can determine what to do re: tags. TonyBallioni (talk) 18:09, 5 December 2017 (UTC)

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Another SPA account recreating the bio Mario Cerrito, III (also as Rio Cerrito), editing Deadly Gamble, and adding Cerrito name to the same towns as previous socks,. — Cactus Writer (talk) 16:50, 11 July 2018 (UTC)

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 * on the behavioral evidence. Obvious WP:DUCK or, at minimum, WP:PROXYING. — Cactus Writer (talk) 17:13, 11 July 2018 (UTC)

Suspected sockpuppets



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Almost all of Summerlee's edits, going back to 2018, have been about Mario Cerrito. After Penandpencil2021 re-re-re-re(etc.)created his article, at, Summer sudenly appeared to partly correct the title to and then lobby more experienced users to move it to a salted title. They then came to !vote at the AfD half an hour after I started it. (There has been extensive disruption in the past at Articles for deletion/Mario Cerrito (see history) and Articles for deletion/Mario Cerrito III.) All of Summer's other edits are about South Jersey and Philadelphia Eagles players, much like Plant sox in the past  (see also past username Eagledelphia).

Summer claims here to know Cerrito, although they omitted that fact in their AfD !vote. Even if that is true, this would be proxying for a banned user, but I'm fairly sure that Summer is in fact MikePlant, based on the wording of this AfD !vote in comparison to the !votes at the second AfD.

I'm including Penandpencil here as a suspected meatpuppet, although I'm fairly certain they're not MikePlant. Their editing style screams South Asian UPE. Note the creation of Lucy Azeez not long after the G11 of Lucy Aziz, which was created by UPE. Still, they're clearly involved in this, and a CU may be of some use. (I note Tony's note in the archive that Eagledelphia may also have been a contractor rather than MikePlant himself.) CU request also applies to Summerlee vis-à-vis any log data. -- Tamzin  [ cetacean needed ] (she/they) 14:31, 3 February 2022 (UTC)
 * For more evidence that this is MikePlant1 and not an associate, note the rather idiosyncratic salt hack of ; cf. Mario Cerrito 3rd., created in 2017 MP sock . --  Tamzin  [ cetacean needed ] (she/they) 14:56, 3 February 2022 (UTC)
 * Adding 2601:8D:8700:5E10:0:0:0:0/64 after its sudden appearance here to add something I'd mentioned at the AfD but with a misleading edit summary (the New York Daily News is not the New York Times). Obvious sock or meat from contribs like . Geolocates near the town Cerrito lives in.  --  Tamzin  [ cetacean needed ] (she/they) 16:36, 3 February 2022 (UTC)

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I am not a sock puppet of anyone. I live in the same area as the person and find it fascinating that is a movie maker in the south Jersey area (where I live.) Obviously I focus on individuals and things I appreciate or feel compelled to edit. I edited on his film back in 2018 because of course I knew about that as well. You are making a lot of accusations but are failing to see that the individual is notable with plenty of references and sources to back it up as stated by others. Instead of trying to put me down and make me feel like I am not wanted to edit on Wikipedia, support would be greatly appreciated Summerlee44 (talk) 15:55, 5 February 2022 (UTC)

‘’’Comment’’’ I want to be straight forward and honest. You are banning my account based orf “circumstantial.” I am enjoying editing on this site and now being kicked for no reason? I’m really upset by that. As RoySmith even said PenandPencil and I are unrelated. I openly admitted that Cerrito is from my area and I do follow him because he is a movie maker. I didn’t realize that is against the rules?! You cannot edit pages of people you follow in your area in which you live? I have been nothing but honest and now I feel I’m being discriminated against. Why is everything on here make you feel like you’re doing something wrong. And to prove my point with that, sometimes if I try and edit from certain places (such as my work) it will say that I cannot because it’s blocked and then give me some other username that I’ve never seen before. I am really trying to process why I would be banned off “circumstantial” when again, I have been nothing but honest the whole time and have added good material on not only Cerrito but others that I follow. I wanted to continue to be a good editor on Wikipedia. Please reconsider Summerlee44 (talk) 10:52, 9 February 2022 (UTC)

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 * Recused as AfD filer. --  Tamzin  [ cetacean needed ] (she/they) 14:31, 3 February 2022 (UTC)
 * - As above. Jack Frost (talk) 16:36, 5 February 2022 (UTC)
 * - -- RoySmith (talk) 16:59, 5 February 2022 (UTC)
 * Summerlee and Penandpencil are ❌ to each other. Everything in the archive is stale, but going by the logs, I'd say Summerlee is  to MikePlant1.  Beware however, that it's based on geolocation of 5 year old log data, and there's not even a clear pattern there.  In other words,  even more so than usual. -- RoySmith (talk) 17:15, 5 February 2022 (UTC)
 * - For training. --Jack Frost (talk) 05:53, 7 February 2022 (UTC)
 * Penandpencil2021 appears to be involved in UPE. Their first creation is a draft article about another filmmaker, followed by a draft of an article about Mario Cerrito. They’ve jumped in on an AfD for a non-notable website they created, created a couple of mildly promotional drafts for non-notable subjects, and created a reportedly pretty blatant press-bio for another non-notable person whose article had just been deleted. Summerlee44 is created and jumps straight into adding some promotional reception numbers about a film directed by Mario Cerrito. A number of the previously confirmed socks also edit this page, although generally to change Cerrito’s name to link the current iteration of his article. Summerlee's 14th edit is to move a page about Cerrito, then they edit heavily about Cerrito with a couple of football edits thrown in regarding Eagles and South Jersey players (also like previous socks) and one or two others, until the SPI is filed whereupon they edit Kelly Ripa and Fred Drains. They also edit Audubon, New Jersey, as previous socks have. The /64 has edited heavily about Cerrito from 25 November to now, with a few other edits thrown in after the SPI is filed. In summary, although it’s circumstantial I am of the view that Summerlee44 is highly likely to be a sock of MikePlant1; there’s too many coincidences for this to be pure chance, and I think they should be blocked (for PROXYING at the very least). I believe Penandpencil2021 is unrelated to MikePlant1, however that they are an Undisclosed Paid Editor and should be blocked for that (obviously without tags). I believe that the /64 is relatedto MikePlant1, and should be blocked for evasion of scrutiny (given the IP's been static for 3 months, that seems a good place to start) to round things out. - Please block  indefinitely as a suspected sockpuppet of . Please block  indefinitely (without tags) for Undisclosed Paid Editing. Please block 2601:8D:8700:5E10:0:0:0:0/64 for 3 months for logged out editing / evasion of scrutiny. --Jack Frost (talk) 09:52, 9 February 2022 (UTC)
 * : As requested, blocked and tagged, blocked without tags for UPE, blocked the /64. Closing -- TNT (talk • she/her) 10:52, 10 February 2022 (UTC)

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Sprang up shortly after I had the AfD reopened due to socking. This account explicitly claims to be Cerrito, which, looking through the archive, I think is a first. At SPI we aren't in the business of tying people to real-world identities, and I suppose we must be open to the possibility that this is Cerrito but "MikePlant1" is just some admirer, but given that the last blocked sock (Summerlee) claimed to have real-life ties to Cerrito, and given the unusual familiarity for a new account with how Wikipedia works (not just !voting at the AfD, but contacting the reopening admin and relisting user ), I think a check comparing them to Summerlee is merited. -- Tamzin  [ cetacean needed ] (she/they) 19:29, 15 February 2022 (UTC)


 * @Tamzin I'm confused. There is no .  Are you talking about Sockpuppet investigations/MikePlant1 (upper case P)?  And what is "the AfD" you refer to? -- RoySmith (talk) 19:42, 15 February 2022 (UTC)
 * Gosh, I was just giving someone the "always copy-paste" talk the other day. Sorry about that. Yes, MikePlant1, if you wouldn't mind merging this there. The above was meant to be read in the context of . AfD in question is . --  Tamzin  [ cetacean needed ] (she/they) 19:49, 15 February 2022 (UTC)
 * Merge completed. -- RoySmith (talk) 19:58, 15 February 2022 (UTC)

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 * ✅ to Summerlee44. -- Amanda (she/her)  02:30, 17 February 2022 (UTC)
 * - please indef MarioCerrito per the block on . Thanks, Spicy (talk) 09:07, 17 February 2022 (UTC)
 * , closing. --Blablubbs (talk) 21:43, 17 February 2022 (UTC)

Suspected sockpuppets
Following an intense socking campaign on this AfD discussion, a 2-day old participant in the AfD discussion,, opened this DRV discussion. Somewhat (un)surprisingly, (36 edits) and  (25 edits) made an appearance at DRV too.
 * Account activity: WexfordUK was a 2-day old account when the AfD opened. This was Saiskysat's first AfD too. WexfordUK seems to be a SPA created specifically to interact with this specific AfD; Saiskysat came back from a two-year absence to participate in the AfD and DRV (diff). ValidatedKing, which was created after the AfD discussion closed, found their way to the DRV too. Outside of the coincidental timing and seniority, the three accounts do not have an overlap of edited articles, although a common interest in cinematography can be noted.
 * Edit size: to make their contributions at the deletion processes less blatant sockpuppetry, the three make minor edits of similar size. The average edit size of WexfordUK is 117.2 bytes, ValidatedKing has 103.4 bytes. Saiskysat has 1k bytes average edits, so that account doesn't fit the pattern as nicely, although those were back in 2019;
 * Edit summaries: all three accounts do not use edit summaries.
 * Signatures: WexfordUK and ValidatedKing tend to forget to sign their comments. Diff, and diff;
 * User pages: common use of emojis in userspace (WexfordUK, ValidatedKing)
 * Pings: WexfordUK, and ValidatedKing make extensive use of pings in their discussions with editors. Interestingly, but not a smoking gun: ValidatedKing pinged me with this reply at DRV 20 minutes after my only DRV comment (diff), then deleted it (diff, likely to avoid scrutiny), and then replied to me again with the WexfordUK account (diff). Note the usage of the "User:Pilaz" ping by both users, later changed to "re/Pilaz" to hide the similarity between the two comments (diff).

WexfordUK and ValidatedKing are likely related to each other, and likely linkable to Summerlee44/Mario Cerrito by a CheckUser. Behavior evidence for Saiskysat is less evident, but it's a SPA so it probably fits the sock pattern (or it's the agent that allegedly warned "Mario Cerrito" that their article was being deleted). It's possible that Saiskycat is the meatpuppet "agent" that the Mario Cerrito account brought up here. Pilaz (talk) 11:34, 4 March 2022 (UTC)

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 * -  Girth Summit  (blether)  16:25, 4 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I've been able to confirm, , to the confirmed socks and , plus the following accounts:
 * is technically ❌. I'll leave it to someone else to determine whether behavioural evaluation would be fruitful. Girth Summit  (blether)  16:35, 4 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I'm pretty sure Saiskysat is a sock of somebody, but I don't see enough to connect them to this case, especially in view of the CU findings. Closing. -- RoySmith (talk) 20:22, 9 March 2022 (UTC)
 * is technically ❌. I'll leave it to someone else to determine whether behavioural evaluation would be fruitful. Girth Summit  (blether)  16:35, 4 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I'm pretty sure Saiskysat is a sock of somebody, but I don't see enough to connect them to this case, especially in view of the CU findings. Closing. -- RoySmith (talk) 20:22, 9 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I'm pretty sure Saiskysat is a sock of somebody, but I don't see enough to connect them to this case, especially in view of the CU findings. Closing. -- RoySmith (talk) 20:22, 9 March 2022 (UTC)

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After a recent sock has been blocked, Lord of Fantasy voted keep immediately. If it is not related then 3 of the accounts I filed are the exact same person.

User has been editing disruptively with its secondary account and his IP after being warned, they still continue. Batteryboi is exactly Lord of Fantasy when doing this edit. 60.145.167.149 (talk) 07:45, 5 March 2022 (UTC)

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 * Filing IP proxyblocked. --Blablubbs (talk) 08:48, 5 March 2022 (UTC)
 * -  Girth Summit  (blether)  14:51, 6 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Despite the very confusing way in which this report was put together, I observed substantial overlaps between these two accounts, so I ran a check. is ✅ to . They have edited quite a few of the same articles, including at least one instance when I saw them reverting with both accounts in a potential attempt to game edit warring restrictions; as such, I'm going to indefinitely block the BatteryBio2 account. Without making any comment on this specific IP, I do observe at least one occasion on which Lord of Fantasy has !voted twice in an AfD discussion, once under their account and a second time while logged out. I'm not quite ready to indef block them for that, but I am going to give them a final warning. They are no more than  to the other accounts listed in this case.  Girth Summit  (blether)  15:02, 6 March 2022 (UTC)