[Foundation-l] WMF resolution on access to non-public data passed

Wed May 2 09:32:29 UTC 2007

Brad Patrick wrote:
> 3) Will the Foundation fight?  That depends, but the clearest answer you
> will get is, there is no guarantee of security, only the best anyone can
>  offer.  Any other statement is hogwash.  If your identity is so secret
> that you can't let it be shared, then don't share it.  That is your
> decision, and no one elses.  For example, I appreciate what sannse is
> saying, and I hold her in very high regard, but I think her opposition
> to the policy is misguided.  People *do* already know who she is.  The
> point is that the Foundation cannot risk letting people no Foundation
> person has shaken hands with, spoken to on the phone, etc., from having
> the capacity to expose confidential information.  One word: Essjay.
>   
Has anyone ever (and I do mean *ever*) seriously asserted that Essjay in 
any way abused oversight, CheckUser, or OTRS access? That seems to me a 
serious misrepresentation of what was essentially a PR mishap for the 
WMF. If your point is only that he was a pseudonymous user with access 
to confidential information, then your one word might as well have been 
"Dmcdevit," or dozens of people here: 
<http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/CheckUser#Current_users_with_access>. 
But crying "Essjay" is sensationalizing the issue, and kicking the man 
while he's down for no discernible reason.

Dominic