User talk:Sir Sputnik
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Speedy deletion of Category:Suspected Wikipedia sockpuppets of StayCalmOnTress

The page Category:Suspected Wikipedia sockpuppets of StayCalmOnTress has been speedily deleted from Wikipedia. This was done under section C1 of the criteria for speedy deletion, because the category had been empty for seven days or more and was not a disambiguation category, a category redirect, a featured topics category, under discussion at Categories for discussion, or a project category that by its nature may have become empty on occasion.
Please do not recreate the material without addressing these concerns, but do not hesitate to add information in line with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. If you think this page should not have been deleted for this reason, you may contact the deleting administrator, or if you have already done so, you may open a discussion at Wikipedia:Deletion review. Ivanvector (Talk/Edits) 04:52, 21 January 2026 (UTC)
You've got mail!

Message added 04:06, 22 January 2026 (UTC). It may take a few minutes from the time the email is sent for it to show up in your inbox. You can at any time by removing the {{You've got mail}} or {{ygm}} template.
It's kind of urgent, so it would be helpful if you could take a look at it ASAP. Thanks! thetechie@enwiki:~$ she/they | talk 04:06, 22 January 2026 (UTC)
A barnstar for you!
| The Original Barnstar | |
| I am a newbie and I have realized my poor resources. I will not do it again NurulAiniAdnan (talk) 11:22, 31 January 2026 (UTC) |
Administrators' newsletter – February 2026
News and updates for administrators from the past month (January 2026).
- Due to the result of a recent motion, a rough consensus of administrators at the arbitration enforcement noticeboard may impose an expanded topic ban on Israel, Israelis, Jews, Judaism, Palestine, Palestinians, Islam, and/or Arabs, if an editor's Arab-Israeli conflict topic ban is determined to be insufficient to prevent disruption. At least one diff per area expanded into should be cited.
- Voting in the 2026 Steward elections started on 06 February 2026 at 14:00 (UTC) and will end on 27 February 2026 at 14:00 (UTC). The confirmation process for current stewards is being held in parallel. You can automatically check your eligibility to vote.
Administrators' newsletter – March 2026
News and updates for administrators from the past month (February 2026).

- Following an RfC, the web archival service archive.today has been deprecated; links to the site should be removed.
- A request for comment is open to discuss retiring CSD criterion R3 in favour of handling such redirects through RfD.
- Following a motion, remedy 9.1 of the Conduct in deletion-related editing case has been amended to limit TenPoundHammer to one XfD nomination or PROD per 24-hour period.
- Following a motion, the Iskandar323 further POV pushing motion has been rescinded.
- The Arbitration Committee has passed a housekeeping motion rescinding a number of outdated remedies and enforcement provisions across multiple legacy cases. In most instances, existing sanctions remain in force and continue to be appealable through the usual processes, while some case-specific remedies were amended or clarified.
- Following the 2026 Steward Elections, the following editors have been appointed as stewards: A09, AmandaNP, Barras, Count Count, M7, SHB2000, Teles and VIGNERON.
- An Unreferenced articles backlog drive is taking place in March 2026 to reduce the backlog of articles tagged with {{Unreferenced}}. You can help reduce the backlog by adding citations to these articles. Sign up to participate!
Phạm Văn Rạng
I like your awesome contributions Sir Sputnik. Reporting Phạm Văn Rạng is like the ball is out of the ballpark. Here's my suggestion: We need to impose an arbitration enforcement for all Vietnam, East Asia and related pages out of scope. How does it work? - AbbaszaGoat (talk) 23:11, 1 April 2026 (UTC)
transfermarkt
I simply translated in a field I know nothing about, - hope a mistake can be forgiven. (I would have understood an edit summary.) -- Gerda Arendt (talk) 08:11, 3 April 2026 (UTC)
Administrators' newsletter – April 2026
News and updates for administrators from the past month (March 2026).

- The content of Wikipedia:Writing articles with large language models has been updated following a request for comment. It now prohibits using LLMs to generate content, with exceptions for translation and copy-editing.
- Following a motion, the GSCASTE extended-confirmed restriction in the Indian military history case has been narrowed. It now applies to caste-related topics in South Asia, and the preemptive protection remedy has been amended accordingly.
- The arbitration case Pbsouthwood has been closed.
- The arbitration case Maghreb has been opened. Evidence submissions in this case will close on 7 April.
Hooney Butter
Given the amount of disruption that this sockfarm causes, can you endorse the current SPI for CU or block? Thanks THEZDRX (User) | (Contact) 04:49, 8 April 2026 (UTC)
Dominic Frimpong
Administrators' newsletter – May 2026
News and updates for administrators from the past month (April 2026).

Interface administrator changes
- Changes to user permissions made from Meta are now included in the local user permissions log (T6055).
- The autoconfirmed user group will soon be modified such that the four-day account age requirement begins when an account makes its first edit (T418484).
- The arbitration case SchroCat has been opened. Evidence submissions in this case closed on 15 April.
- Per a recent motion, appeals of blocks from the conflict-of-interest VRT queue are, by default, appealed on-wiki through the normal unblock process. However, they may be heard by the Committee if COIVRTers disagree on the interpretation of the evidence or believe ArbCom would be better suited to hear the appeal. Administrators are also advised that loosening or lifting such blocks without the consent of someone with access to the queue or ArbCom can be grounds for desysopping.
- Per a recent motion, restrictions issued directly by the Committee may now be enforced with blocks which work exactly like contentious topic blocks.
- The arbitration case Maghreb has been closed.
- The May 2026 administrator elections are scheduled to run from April 29 to May 19. The call for candidates ends May 5.
- The 2026 Universal Code of Conduct Coordinating Committee (U4C) election is scheduled to run from April 25 to June 1. Candidacy submissions close on May 10.
- A new noticeboard for non-urgent, batch page protection requests has been created, primarily for the enforcement of contentious topic restrictions.
Vietnamese airfields and history
Can you please take a look at recent edits to Soc Trang Airfield and Binh Thuy Air Base, seems to be a similar pattern. thanks Mztourist (talk) 05:51, 14 May 2026 (UTC)
- I just added another user to your 14 May Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/Phạm Văn Rạng regards Mztourist (talk) 11:40, 14 May 2026 (UTC)
- Another one: User:Figherthree. Mztourist (talk) 03:03, 15 May 2026 (UTC)
- @Mztourist: If you find any more of them, please report them to Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/Phạm Văn Rạng. While I don't mind fielding the odd sockpuppetry report here, most reporting should go through the proper channels. Sir Sputnik (talk) 22:33, 15 May 2026 (UTC)
- I really don't have the energy to file SPIs. The proper channels impose onerous obligations of proof on the reporter, while the sock once outed can can just immediately go and create another sock. Just look at how much time and effort has been wasted over the years countering Phạm Văn Rạng and others and they just keep coming back. The system needs to change, either all new users should have to undergo a check user or established users like me should be able to simply request a check user and have it done. Mztourist (talk) 05:38, 16 May 2026 (UTC)
- @Mztourist: If you find any more of them, please report them to Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/Phạm Văn Rạng. While I don't mind fielding the odd sockpuppetry report here, most reporting should go through the proper channels. Sir Sputnik (talk) 22:33, 15 May 2026 (UTC)
- Another one: User:Figherthree. Mztourist (talk) 03:03, 15 May 2026 (UTC)
Tosaint Ricketts
Hi Sir Sputnik, thanks for looking out for unreliable sources being added to football articles. At Tosaint Ricketts, you rolled back large additions citing WP:LLM. Do you think the latest additions from today are also LLM-based? Kind regards, Robby.is.on (talk) 12:41, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
- @Robby.is.on: Yes. Large parts are verbatim reposts of the content the same user added previously. Sir Sputnik (talk) 14:49, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
- Thanks. Would you mind sharing what LLM giveaways I can look out for in diffs going forward? Robby.is.on (talk) 15:51, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
- The titles of some of the sources cited are mild hallucinations, reasonable descriptions of what the source is, but not actually taken from the source itself. It's the kind of thing you're probably not going to notice unless you're inspecting the sources, or you're very familiar with how a given publication tends to title its content. There's a bit more to it than that of course, but that was the cue that lead me looking more closely. Sir Sputnik (talk) 16:10, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
- Thanks a lot! That's very interesting. Happy editing, Robby.is.on (talk) 17:45, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
- The titles of some of the sources cited are mild hallucinations, reasonable descriptions of what the source is, but not actually taken from the source itself. It's the kind of thing you're probably not going to notice unless you're inspecting the sources, or you're very familiar with how a given publication tends to title its content. There's a bit more to it than that of course, but that was the cue that lead me looking more closely. Sir Sputnik (talk) 16:10, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
- Thanks. Would you mind sharing what LLM giveaways I can look out for in diffs going forward? Robby.is.on (talk) 15:51, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
Wellington Teixeira dos Montes
I didn't know the source I added was unreliable, thanks for catching and removing it. Malgosha 20:59, 31 May 2026 (UTC)
Administrators' newsletter – June 2026
News and updates for administrators from the past month (May 2026).

- Following an RfC, the "persistent usage of large language models" has been included as a common reason for a block.
- Mandatory 2FA for bureaucrats: Bureaucrats without two-factor authentication (2FA) enabled have already lost access to their advanced rights on 26 May. Those who do not enable 2FA may be automatically removed from the groups in mid-June 2026, and from that point onward, new members must have 2FA enabled before they can be added. (T423119, T423120)
- The arbitration case SchroCat has been closed.
- The arbitration case Michael Jackson has opened. Evidence submissions in this case closes on 1 June.
- Voting for the 2026 Universal Code of Conduct Coordinating Committee (U4C) election closes on 1 June.
Protection of Olivia Sanabia
Hello Sir Sputnik,
As an AFC reviewer, I was intending to accept Draft:Olivia Sanabia. However, as the target is protected from creation, I would like to request for this to be unprotected so that I could move it to mainspace. Thank you JuniperChill (talk) 10:44, 6 June 2026 (UTC)
- @JuniperChill:
Done. Sir Sputnik (talk) 23:46, 6 June 2026 (UTC)
Unblock request for User:Treaty07 and User:Ngozi16
Hello Sir Putnik,
I’m writing to advocate for User:Treaty07 and User:Ngozi16, blocked for alleged sock puppetry. I believe this was a false positive.
Both are new editors who joined my outreach event on 13 June 2026 and 10 June 2026, respectively. We edit from shared spaces, which I understand can trigger technical checks for sock puppetry. However, they are separate individuals. Contributions for @Treaty07 can be found here, while contributiuons for @Ngozi16 can be found here.
I understand Wikipedia takes sock puppetry seriously, and these editors did not intend to violate policy. The overlap likely comes from shared training with similar hashtags (#1Lib1RefABJ), possibly shared IP, and editing similar topics.
Kindly consider unblocking them. I'm willing to commit more time to training them, especially on account security, notability guidelines, source reliability, and other project policies.
Thank you for reviewing this. I’m happy to provide more details or verification if needed. King ChristLike (talk) 15:28, 25 June 2026 (UTC)
- The short answer here is no. The possibility that this might be two people working in concert had occurred to me, but it doesn't make any difference. Their conduct is still block evasion. (See WP:MEAT). Both of them have claimed to have no knowledge of the other. Dishonesty like that means there is no path back to editing for them for the foreseeable future. Sir Sputnik (talk) 22:17, 25 June 2026 (UTC)
- Hello again @Sir Sputnik, I understand the block was placed due to technical and behavioral overlap that looked like MEAT/block evasion. Just to reiterate that I’m the event organizer of the event and take responsibility for that overlap.
- User:Treaty07 and User:Ngozi16 are separate individuals who both attended the virtual and physical events on 10 June 2026 and 13 June 2026, respectively. At the physical event, we used a shared venue with WiFi, and trained everyone to use the same campaign edit summary #1Lib1RefABJ. That explains the similar edit summaries, topics and IP. VRT verification can be provided.
- I’ve since met with both virtually and trained them on WP:SOCK, WP:MEAT, WP:N, and WP:RS. They understand why the accounts looked linked and are now committed to independent editing and no form of edit coordination on-wiki going forward.
- If unblock isn’t possible now, I request they be considered under the standard offer after 6 months with no editing.
- Thank you for reviewing this again. King ChristLike (talk) 19:51, 29 June 2026 (UTC)
- They have engaged in block evasion, and then lied about it. They are not coming back for the foreseeable future. Sir Sputnik (talk) 21:14, 29 June 2026 (UTC)
- Could you clarify what specific behavior from them indicated block evasion? King ChristLike (talk) 04:59, 1 July 2026 (UTC)
- Ngozi was already blocked for disruptive editing when Treaty registered their account. Treaty continued the disruptive editing that had made the block against Ngozi necessary. I understand that you've met them in person and so are inclined to see the best in them, but both of them have lied in unblocks requests. Any further unblock requests from them will lack credibility as a result. No amount advocacy on your part will change that. Sir Sputnik (talk) 18:09, 1 July 2026 (UTC)
- @Sir Sputnik, I honestly don’t see the relationship that you’re trying to establish here when you say
Ngozi was already blocked for disruptive editing when Treaty registered their account... No amount advocacy on your part will change that.
- User:Ngozi16 created her account on June 10, 2026. She joined my event and was first blocked by you on June 12 for 31 hours, blocked again on June 14 for one week, and finally blocked indefinitely on June 19. See block log here.
- Meanwhile, User:Treaty07 registered their account on 30th January, 2026. Started editing in my campaign on June 13 and indefinitely blocked by you on June 19. See block log here.
- Clearly, this isn’t any case of block evasion. See WP:ASPERSIONS. AFAIK, they’re both new editors and different persons. The only affiliation is them registering for my outreach event, editing similar topics, and using same edit summary (just as everyone else did). King ChristLike (talk) 05:48, 3 July 2026 (UTC)
- @Sir Sputnik, I honestly don’t see the relationship that you’re trying to establish here when you say
- Ngozi was already blocked for disruptive editing when Treaty registered their account. Treaty continued the disruptive editing that had made the block against Ngozi necessary. I understand that you've met them in person and so are inclined to see the best in them, but both of them have lied in unblocks requests. Any further unblock requests from them will lack credibility as a result. No amount advocacy on your part will change that. Sir Sputnik (talk) 18:09, 1 July 2026 (UTC)
- Could you clarify what specific behavior from them indicated block evasion? King ChristLike (talk) 04:59, 1 July 2026 (UTC)
- They have engaged in block evasion, and then lied about it. They are not coming back for the foreseeable future. Sir Sputnik (talk) 21:14, 29 June 2026 (UTC)
Administrators' newsletter – July 2026
News and updates for administrators from the past month (June 2026).

- A request for comment asks whether the criteria for autoconfirmed and extended confirmed should be modified.
- A request for comment proposes an addendum for the Real name section of the Username policy.
- The special page Special:RangeCalculator has been created for any users to use to find an IP range. (phab:T268429)
- The "indefinitely" button in Special:Block for temporary accounts can be replaced with a preferred block duration stated on MediaWiki:ipb-indefinite-expiry-temporary-account. (phab:T427125)
- Following a series of motions, changes to the contentious topics procedure to restructure awareness have been implemented.
- The arbitration case Michael Jackson has been closed.
- The 2026 Developing Countries WikiContest will run from 1 July to 30 September. Sign up now!
- 10 candidates have been appointed to the U4C.