 | This is an essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
 | This page in a nutshell: Wikipedia is not a game of Clue. |
Speculation about the real life identity of editors is not productive, and may constitute outing, a serious form of harassment. If an editor reveals their own identity at Wikipedia, that information can be discussed on Wikipedia. Sleuthing for details and clues elsewhere on the Internet to then post that information on Wikipedia is not a good idea.
Wikipedia's conflict of interest guideline provides helpful advice for editors who's real life activities may conflict with their editing of Wikipedia. If they cause a problem, Wikipedia policies such as neutral point of view and no original research may be referenced. Outing is not a suitable strategy to control COI editing.
Though Wikipedia tries to protect editors' privacy, Wikipedia cannot prevent outside parties, such as reporters, from sleuthing edit histories and gathering clues from the Internet. Therefore, editors should be careful not to engage in COI editing, lest they suffer real life embarrassment.
Exceptions
editWhile the community often frowns upon sleuthing, every rule or custom has its exceptions. If an editor freely divulges information about themselves, seeks higher access levels such as Arbitration Committee membership, or becomes a regular editor of hot topics, they should expect that the public record may be scrutinized for evidence of hidden conflicts of interest or advocacy.