Vandalism

Vandalism (capitalized) is the spirit or conduct of the Vandals; thus, ferocious cruelty; hostility to the arts and literature, or willful destruction or defacement of their monuments.

More recent cases of Vandalism include the Taliban destruction of Buddhist statuary in Afghanistan.

Uncapitalized, vandalism is willful wanton and malicious destruction of the property of others.

The term is usually generalized to include undesired, non-destructive unauthorized modification (e.g. defacement) of property.

Wikipedia vandalism

In the case of Wikipedia, as all modifications are authorized and none can be truly destructive, vandalism refers to undesired modification of its pages.

Since most modifications are desired and encouraged (see Be bold in updating pages), only the most egregious cases of editing can be considered vandalism.

Even downright [bad jokes and other nonsense]? are not generally considered vandalism, and often are simply cases of misunderstanding, confusion, or humor unnecessary to the entry.

Cases of Wikipedia vandalism involve the total replacement of on-topic content with off-topic content, often vulgar? or obscene, especially with the inclusion of off-server images.

The most inviting target for such vandalism is the HomePage. Its contents have been replaced at least four times by anonymous people by off-topic material, which is why editing of the page is currently restricted. To gain access to editing the HomePage, e-mail Jimbo Wales.

Response to Wikipedia vandalism

There is a zero-tolerance policy for such cases, which will be removed as soon as discovered. Archival of such cases elsewhere on Wikipedia is forbidden by Larry Sanger.

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External Links and References

[Vandalised Wikipedia HomePages]