Online stalkers menace Wikipedia editors
p2pnet news | P2P:- Cyberstalkers harassing Wikipedia volunteers?
That’s the essence of an email which arrived while I was away for a recharge.
It came from a thoroughly reliable Wikipedia source who went on >>>
It’s getting so no one is safe,”
A stalker drove former Wikipedia editor David Shankbone off the site. Mr. Shankbone describes the growing problem of harassment and stalking that targets the nonprofit encyclopedia’s most dedicated volunteers, in an article “Nobody’s Safe in Cyberspace” published in the June 2008 issue of the Brooklyn Rail.
Prior to becoming the focus of a stalker, Mr. Shankbone was a prolific contributor. His interview credits include Augusten Burroughs, Shimon Peres, Evan Wolfson, Eric Bogosian, Al Sharpton, Larry Kramer, and Ingrid Newkirk.
He photographed Susan Sarandon, Madonna, Jim McGreevey, Floyd Abrams and Julianne Moore, among others. Shankbone did all of this work for free and placed it under free license. Then a couple of minor corrections to the biography of Michael Lucas, a pornography director, attracted a celebrity stalker who had been targeting Lucas. Soon the stalker was targeting Shankbone as well.
One example of the threats directed at Shankbone is a message posted onsitefrom March 14, 2008:
If I were you, I would be particularly wary and vigilant, and careful of where I go and who I meet. Further, I would not advertise my whereabouts or plans to attend any event open to the general public, or where the public would have easy access. In particular, I would not attend the Wiki event at Columbia this Sunday — anyone wishing to do you harm would have no trouble getting to you and then getting away.
The stalker used a range of IP addresses that resolved to northern New Jersey, within driving distance of Columbia University and within range of Shankbone’s workplace and home. The stalker also invented a variety of personas to discredit Shankbone, variously claiming that Shankbone was a drug addict, an alcoholic, or a prostitute.
The stalker posted graphic sexual fantasies about Shankbone and repeatedly hinted that Shankbone would become the target of a physical attack. In a press release after Shankbone’s resignation from Wikipedia Michael Lucas noted, “I am shocked and dismayed that important corrections quickly snowballed into such outrageous reactions.”
Two other Wikipedia volunteers have stepped forward. One, who edits anonymously as SlimVirgin, stated:
What is needed is a very strong and coordinated stance from the [Wikimedia] Foundation.
Many of us have asked for this, particularly from Florence [Devouard], the chair of the Foundation, or from Jimbo Wales, but no progress has ever been made.
SlimVirgin, who is one of Wikipedia’s 100 most prolific volunteers at over 60,000 edits, has become a target of conspiracy theorists because she often edits controversial topics. “I heard people were trying to contact friends, ex-boyfriends and ex-employers,” she told Shankbone. “One person wrote that they looked forward to punching me in the face and another wondered whether I was worried about being raped.”
Lise Broer, who edits under the pseudonym Durova, restores historic photographs. Dozens of her restorations have earned Featured Picture status, Wikipedia’s highest distinction for image contributions. She has also intervened to resolve disputes at controversial topics.
In September 2007 she placed a siteban on a user who had been defaming private investigator Paul Barresi and violating other site policies. The anonymous individual soon e-mailed to ask how to appeal her decision. She responded promptly. Rather than pursue an appeal he continued to e-mail her. When the messages degenerated into vows that she would “get it when she least expected” and graphic fantasies of her being maimed, raped, and killed she traced the e-mail headers to a static location within driving distance of her home.
Then she contacted the FBI, who have opened an investigation.
Ms. Broer has continued her volunteer work for the website. She observes, “People who aren’t fully rational often have a keen understanding of power structures. They’re attracted to a combination of power and vulnerability. Wikipedia has both in spades.”
She also notes that other leading social media sites may experience a similar dynamic.
Stay tuned.
Jon Newton – p2pnet
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Brooklyn Rail – Nobody’s Safe in Cyberspace, June, 2008
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June 17th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Wikipedia has been slowly devolving into the very kind of totalitarian state that the creators once strongly eschewed.
As democratic anarchy has been replaced by increasingly authoritarian rule, and with an ever-growing bureaucracy to enforce it, is it any wonder that many of the bitter and disenfranchised on the outside of the power structure will be driven to attack those on the inside?
June 17th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Increasingly authoritarian rule is what the internet is all about these days.
June 20th, 2008 at 8:24 am
Anything with the word “anarchy” in it will always descend into chaos , a self fulfilling destiny . I am at odds with the description of “bitter and disenfranchised” , be more accurate – “flipping nutters” is more accurate . I am no fan of Wiki , to me its a harbourer of urban myth and a means for individuals to rewrite their history .