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Vandal Patrol Program
The Vandal Patrol Program is designed specifically to combat vandal attacks, aid in the maintenance of question alternates and to improve the overall quality of the site. The program works to target and address each goal with a separate division. There are three divisions within the program: Site Guardians, Alternates Specialists and Site Investigators. An additional designation of Vandal Patrol Generalist exists as part of the program but is not attached to a specific division.
14 Questions
Why was mullet fingers vandalizing the construction site?
Mullet was vandalizing the construction site because the workers wanted to make a pancake house on the lot and although burrowing owls were living there, the workers were the only ones who knew. This was illegal. Mullet cared about what happened to the owls.
What is the punishment if you vandalize WikiAnswers?
If you break one of the rules like post spam, post inappropriate text, or are rude to other members of Wiki Answers, a Supervisor could possibly suspend you temporarily or permanently (depending on the damage) but usually they give you warnings. If you find a person that should have a word with a Supervisor because of their bad behavior, contact a Supervisor telling them the problem & the name of the user.
How long does a typical Vandal Patrol mission take?
This will vary depending on the type of mission selected and the Super performing the mission. Average time 30 mins to 3 hours.
How do you spot the patterns of a spammer?
These are some things I did on two occasions to locate a bunch of spammers. The two situations were different because on one day the vandals were active at that time, but on the other,they were not active.
Both situations involved multiple users putting the same URLs in various answers. That was what connected one person to the next.
In the first instance several contributors were writing answers that contained the same URLs. Since most were coming into the Uncategorized category, monitoring the "New Answers" in that category revealed each spammer as he/she wrote an answer if the answers had the same URL.
If an answer has that URL, check that person's contribution page to see if any other contributions have it too. Clicking on that person's contributions does two things.
- It brings up Related Answers with similar spammed answers written by other users. Go to their contribution page and check their contributions and you'll get more Related Questions showing still other spammers. Just continue that process and you'll find more vandals inserting the same URL.
- It also shows spam being put into answers in categories other than Uncategorized. Monitoring New Answers in those other categories revealed answers by still other spammers. Then each of those user's contributions could be checked and so on.
Look for commercial websites:
People who post commercial websites in answers are selling something and they want to get as many ads out there as possible. Users who post one commercial site probably posted more, so that user should be checked.
Again, checking each contribution of a person identified as a spammer will bring up related answers which can then be checked as described above. The answers to the related questions will lead you to other vandals.
If several people have put the same URL into answers its helpful to look at all categories that question is in. One person put most answers in "Wristwatches" but put one or two in "Jewelry" as well. Checking on answers in the "Jewelry" category revealed other spammers who were using that category. Once their names are known, check their contributions too. Once again just follow the connections and you'll find more spammers and spammed answers.
Do a Search of Answers:
When a group of spammers has put the same website in different answers and categories, do a "Search" for "Answers" using that website as the key word. All answers with that website will come up, but much more important is that the names all Users who have posted that website in an answer will also come up. Go to each of those users to see if they are vandals, check their contributions and then you can do all of the steps above.
Take topicality into account:
It's the shopping season so there will be lots of commercial spam in the various types merchandise and shopping categories."Jewelry"; "Wristwatches"; "Online Shopping" will probably get spam every day now.
How do you become a Senior Site Guardian in the Vandal Patrol?
First, you have to be a Supervisor. Then, you need to join the Vandal Patrol and opt to be a Site Guardian. Then, after you have completed a certain number of hours (500, maybe) you will be crowned a Senior Site Guardian.
Someone who posts spam would be a spammer. WikiAnswers is not the place for spamming.
The word Vandal means one who purposefully, willfully or out of ignorance destroys, damages or defaces the property or work of others. This includes both private and public property.
A Vandal here in WikiAnswers is a contributor who removes, destroys or otherwise messes with a good answer. They may erase a good answer and place a bad answer. There are also other things a vandal probably could do to be considered a vandal.
Why do vandals keep vandalizing wikianswers if they get blocked so easily by supervisors?
Mostly because the vandals outnumber supervisors who are watching by a large margin. Most supervisors who are on the site at any given time are working on specific projects/tasks, in their own categories, or otherwise simply dealing with questions and answers that are not current.
Still, a great many vandals do get blocked, and the more questions someone vandalizes the better chance a supervisor has of catching them.
What are some examples of vandalism?
Physical Vandalism
- Breaking windows
- Graffiti
- Damage to buildings and other property
Virtual Vandalism (on WikiAnswers)
- Removing good answer to replace with nonsense
- Removing good answers to replace with nothing
- Changing questions to gibberish
- Changing questions to read differently (excluding improvements)
- Bad recategorizing (inappropriate categories)
- Posting nonsense questions
- Posting bad links
- Posting links to viruses and malware
- Deleting messages from the message boards of other members
- Posting offensive questions
- Use of vulgar language or profanities
What is the report abuse button for?
The report abuse button is there to allow users to report questions or answers that are of low quality or that are abusive in nature.
Examples:
- Questions or answers that contain profane language (swear or curse words)
- Questions or answers that encourage people to commit illegal acts or explain who the break the law
- Questions or answers that are racially abusive
- Questions or answers that are homophobic
- Questions or answers that are designed to upset or intimidate a specific person or group of people (bullying)
If you saw any of the above you could check the box marked:
"is inflammatory/offensive or contains bad language"
Questions or answers may also be reported for being of poor quality:
An answer may be poorly spelt or contain bad grammar or syntax (e.g. "Nu Karz r vry xpensiv" as an answer to the question "How much might a new car cost?" would clearly require an improvement in spelling.
In a case like that you would check the box:
"needs spelling/grammar cleanup"
The above answer even with corrected spelling doesn't really answer the question very well and could reasonably include some more detailed information. As such you might check the "needs more detail" box.
Some answers may have had contributions from many users who have all made their own additions to an answer. This can make the answer difficult to read and very disjointed. If this is the case then you can check the "is repetitive or poorly structured" check box.
For some questions there may not be a single correct answer, rather opnions may be needed. This tends to happen in questions of the type "what is the best" or "Is X better than Y". If you see a question like this where someone has written an answer that only covers one side of the debate without discussing the second then it may be sensible to check the "is one-sided" check box.
An example might be for a question "What is better XBOX or PS3?" This is an opinion question. So if you saw an answer like "The PS3 is best XBOX is rubbish" then you would check the box.
A good answer to this question might be something like "The PS3 is able to produce better graphics than the XBOX, however the PS3 is more expensive to buy. Also there is a larger range of games available for the XBOX however the newest games tend to be available for the PS3 first" (NB - I've made these up as examples!).
The second answer gives a better feel for the pros and cons of both consoles and allows the reader to form their own opinion from the evidence.
Questions or answers containing personal information:
It is not a good idea to provide too much personal information when you are online. Answers should not contain personal email addresses or phone numbers, or peoples names or addresses.
If you see an answer that contains personal information then you would check the "contains phone number or web address" after clicking the report abuse button.
If you see spam or vandalism how do you contact the Vandal Patrol on WikiAnswers?
There are several ways of doing so. You can click on 'Report abuse' at the top right of the question. You can also post a message in the community forum or leave a message on any supervisors message board.
How long is the suspension due to vandalism on WikiAnswers?
The length of a suspension from the site will vary depending on the violation. It could be as short as 3 hours or ultimately, permanent.
What are the consequences of vandalizing WikiAnswers?
The consequences are kicked out of wikianswers, and your access thrown to the hungry lions.
Who is in charge of Vandal Patrol?
The Vandal Patrol is typically managed by a team or department within an organization or community that is responsible for enforcing rules, preventing vandalism, and maintaining the security and cleanliness of public spaces. The specific individuals in charge may vary depending on the organization or community, but it usually involves a combination of security personnel, law enforcement, and administrative staff.
