The following discussion is an archived debate of the case of suspected sockpuppetry. Please do not modify it. No further edits should be made to this page. All edits should go to the talk page of this case. If you are seeing this page as a result of an attempt to open a new case of sockpuppetry of the same user, read this for detailed instructions.

User:Iamandrewrice (2nd)[edit]

Suspected sockpuppeteer

Iamandrewrice (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · page moves · block user · block log)

Suspected sockpuppets

Gozitancrabz (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · page moves · block user · block log)
78.146.208.33 (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · page moves · block user · block log)
78.149.135.145 (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · page moves · block user · block log)
78.146.75.142 (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · page moves · block user · block log)
89.241.12.36 (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · page moves · block user · block log)

Report submission by

Bencherlite ^Talk 21:06, 30 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Evidence

Iamandrewrice ("IAAR") was community-banned in December 2007 for his disruption of WP using mulitple accounts - see here for the ban discussion. Subsequently, he was caught socking in February 2008: see the checkuser report. One of the accounts found to be a sockpuppet was Crystalclearchanges (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log) ("CCC"), blocked on 29 February 2008.

The account Gozitancrabz was created on 16 March 2008. (Full disclosure - I am involved in a discussion he has generated at Talk:Constituent country which has spilled over into Talk:Wales.)

There are a number of striking similarities that make me think that Gozitancrabz is Iamandrewrice back once again:

It was noted here and here during previous discussions of IAAR and CCC that IAAR's pet areas included Malta and Latin Europe.

Gozitancrabz's very first edit was to write an article on Maltese surnames. He then added a link to that article to Family name and reworded the section on Maltese surnames in that article [1].
- Family name was also one of the articles that CCC edited, particularly (you've guessed it) the section on Maltese surnames: 8 edits, another one, two more.

CCC created Template:Italian people
- Gozitancrabz renamed and edited this template within his first 40 edits.

Gozitancrabz has also used 78.149.135.145 and 78.146.208.33 (admitting this one here) when logged out. Both are from the same IP provider as IPs that were noted during the IAAR checkuser enquiry.

Gozitan is the adjective for people from Gozo, an island off the coast of Malta.

IAAR claims on Talk:Maltese language that his mother is from Malta. In this edit, Gozitancrabz says that he is of Latin extraction, which would fit with IAAR's interests.

A minor point, but both CCC and Gozitancrabz have edited Internet slang.

Other people more familiar with forensic investigations may have a different opinion, but my view is that there are too many overlaps between IAAR/CCC and Gozitancrabz for them not to be the same person, breaking their ban. Bencherlite ^Talk 21:06, 30 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Comments

The IP address 78.146.75.142 (talk · contribs · WHOIS) made one edit (to the Gauci article, on 16 March), which reinstated edits originally made by Crystalclearchanges, a few minutes before Gozitancrabz registered as a user and created a page which contained a link to that article. There are few coincidences here but nothing conclusive, and I think a checkuser will probably be needed. --Snigbrook ^(talk) 12:04, 1 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

They seem to have a oddly-similar way of mangling the English language (although they each claim/claimed on their user pages that their mother tongue/only language is English, it is obvious in each case that this is not so). One of IAAR's edits read "its quoted by the bbc... surely thats reliable enough. Urgh... like basically everything I have done today has been reverted..." (here). Gozitancrabz too has repeatedly asserted that anything that is 'quoted by the BBC' must be accepted unthinkingly (one example); they both use three full stops as an ellipsis unusually frequently; and both troll on the user pages of those who cross or contradict them. ariwara (talk) —Preceding comment was added at 22:09, 1 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Checkuser request filed at Wikipedia:Requests for checkuser/Case/Iamandrewrice. Bencherlite ^Talk 16:58, 1 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]
Conclusions

The evidence presented here supporting the statement that Gozitancrabz = Iamandrewrice is very robust. Primarily, the timing of account creation/account blocking (suggesting a throwaway pattern), and the concerningly similar editing habits–both inside and outside of the topic area in which the filing editor operates, and in areas completely unrelated to the relevant topic area–throw up some major red lights to me. The side evidence–similarities in contribution tone, edit summaries–reinforces the suggestions of sock puppetry.

With regards to the IP addresses, there is some evidence washing around, but insofar as the behavioural angle of suspected sock puppets (SSP) can function, it is circumstantial and insufficient. I would hope that the suggestions of sock puppetry against the IP addresses made on this page will be addressed at this report's sister, Wikipedia:Requests for checkuser/Case/Iamandrewrice.

Further to this, I have indefinitely blocked Gozitancrabz (talk · contribs · deleted contribs · nuke contribs · logs · filter log · block user · block log), and taken no action for the time being against the IP addresses. Anthøny 18:21, 2 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]