Wikimedia Foundation Access to Nonpublic Personal Data Policy

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See also: :m:Access to nonpublic personal data policy/Noticeboard

This policy was published on 6 November 2018 and came into effect on November 15, 2018. For the previous version please see the previous version.

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This is a user-friendly summary of the access to nonpublic personal data policy.

Disclaimer: This summary is not a part of the access to nonpublic personal data policy and is not a legal document. It is simply a handy reference for understanding the full access to nonpublic personal data policy. Think of it as the user-friendly interface.

Because we believe that the privacy of the Wikimedia community is essential, community members with access to nonpublic personal data may only release information under certain circumstances, such as:

When the community members need to stop damage to the Wikimedia Sites (such as assisting in the targeting of IP blocks);
When there is an immediate and credible threat of serious bodily harm;
When the community members have the express permission of the user whose nonpublic personal data is to be disclosed; or
When required by law.

Because we believe that safeguarding the privacy of the Wikimedia community is an important Wikimedia value, those who have access to nonpublic personal data need to:

Be at least 18 years old (except email response team members, who must be at least 16 years old);
Provide contact information; and
Sign a confidentiality agreement.

Because we value the community members who take on this critical role in the safeguarding of the Wikimedia Sites and its users and want to protect their privacy, we promise to:

Keep confidential and secure their contact information and confidentiality agreement

Purpose

Wikimedia Sites (the "Sites") are the product of a global community of volunteer contributors and editors. This dedicated group of individuals not only writes and curates content on the Sites, they also help ensure the safety of the Sites and its users as well as compliance with applicable policies. To manage this immense task effectively, certain community members are entrusted with access to limited amounts of nonpublic personal information regarding other users ("Nonpublic Personal Data"). For example, a community member who has "checkuser" rights could use those rights to investigate whether a single user is using multiple accounts in a manner inconsistent with Wikimedia policies. The purpose of this "Access to Nonpublic Personal Data Information" policy (the "Policy") is to:

explain the minimum requirements that must be met by any community member who has access to Nonpublic Personal Data;
explain the rights and responsibilities of community members with access to Nonpublic Personal Data;
ensure that community members with access to Nonpublic Personal Data understand and commit to maintaining the confidentiality of Nonpublic Personal Data; and
provide guidelines to community members with access to Nonpublic Personal Data as to when they may access Nonpublic Personal Data, how they may use such information, and when and to whom they may disclose such information.

Community members covered by this Policy

This Policy applies to any community member to whom the Wikimedia Foundation has granted access to Nonpublic Personal Data covered by the Privacy Policy ("Designated Community Member"), including:

Community members with access to any tool that permits them to view Nonpublic Personal Data about other users (such as the CheckUser tool) or members of the public (for example, through VRTS accounts);
Community members with the ability to access content or Nonpublic Personal Data which has been removed from administrator view (such as the Suppression tool); and
Volunteer developers with access to Nonpublic Personal Data.

For illustrative purposes only, some examples of Designated Community Members include: VRTS administrators, email response team members, and Stewards. This Policy does not apply to users whose rights only include the ability to view standard deleted revisions. This Policy also does not apply to Wikimedia Foundation employees or contractors who act in their professional capacity because they are already subject to other confidentiality agreements that are as or more protective than this Policy.

Exceptions. The Wikimedia Foundation may, at its sole discretion, provide Nonpublic Personal Data to groups of community members who are not covered by this Policy and to groups of Designated Community Members under terms outside of this Policy (“exceptions”). Such exceptions must be reviewed by the Wikimedia Foundation’s Legal department; approved exceptions are listed publicly. In individual cases, "exemptions" may be granted to users who would otherwise be unable to be granted NDA status due to user age or known domicile in a jurisdiction that blocks access to Wikimedia projects. Such individual exemptions must also be reviewed by the Legal department, but approved exemptions are not listed publicly in consideration of community member privacy.

Minimum requirements for Designated Community Members applying for access to nonpublic information rights

The following conditions are minimum requirements that all Designated Community Members must meet before being granted access to Nonpublic Personal Data ("access rights"). These conditions should also be considered requirements to be a candidate for any community-run selection process for a role that would convey such access rights. The community may require candidates for access rights to meet additional community-specified criteria on a case-by-case or role-by-role basis.

(a) Minimum age. Access to nonpublic information requires maturity because of the significant responsibilities that come along with confidentiality obligations. For this reason, any community member who applies for access rights must:

be at least eighteen (18) years of age, except email response team members who must be at least sixteen (16) years of age; and
must certify to the Wikimedia Foundation that they meet the minimum age required for the rights they are applying for.

(b) Valid, linked email address. In order to ensure that we can contact the individuals who take on these important roles, any community member who applies for access rights must:

submit to the Wikimedia Foundation a valid email address;
have the account under which they are applying for rights linked to a valid email address;
complete verification of the submitted and/or linked email address (such as responding to a confirmation email sent to their submitted email address), if requested to do so; and
inform the Wikimedia Foundation of any change to their email address within one week of such change.

(c) Confidentiality. To ensure that community members with access rights understand and commit to keeping the Nonpublic Personal Data confidential, they will be required to read and certify that they agree to a short Confidentiality Agreement that outlines:

what Designated Community Members should treat as confidential information;
when they are allowed to access Nonpublic Personal Data;
how Designated Community Members may use Nonpublic Personal Data about other users;
when and to whom they may disclose the Nonpublic Personal Data and how they must otherwise refrain from disclosing Nonpublic Personal Data to anyone, except as permitted under applicable policies;
how they must safeguard their accounts from unauthorized access; and
when they must report disclosure of Nonpublic Personal Data to third parties or improper access, use, or disclosure of Nonpublic Personal Data.

(d) Privacy. In consideration of the privacy of Designated Community Members, any personal information submitted by Designated Community Members to the Wikimedia Foundation as part of their application process or otherwise under this Policy is subject to the Wikimedia Foundation's Privacy Policy and Data Retention Guidelines.

(e) Submission timeline. Any community member who has been granted access rights at the time this Policy becomes effective must meet the requirements of Sections (a) – (c) of this Policy within ninety (90) calendar days of the date this Policy becomes effective. The Wikimedia Foundation may, at its sole discretion, extend the compliance period for individual community members as needed.

Any community member who has not met the requirements of Section (a) – (c) of this Policy by the deadline above should anticipate having their access rights revoked until they have submitted the required information.

Use and disclosure of nonpublic information

Designated Community Members provide valuable services to the Sites and its users – they fight vandalism, respond to helpdesk emails, ensure that improperly disclosed private data is removed from public view, confirm license permissions, investigate sockpuppets, improve and debug software, and much more. But Designated Community Members' use of access rights is limited to certain circumstances and contexts. This section elucidates the situations in which access rights may be used and Nonpublic Personal Data may be disclosed to third parties.

(a) Use of access rights and Nonpublic Personal Data. All Designated Community Members may only use their access rights and the subsequent information they access in accordance with the policies that govern the tools they use to gain such access. For example, community members with access to the CheckUser tool must comply with the global CheckUser Policy, and, unless they are performing a cross-wiki check, they must also comply with the more restrictive local policies applicable to the relevant Site. Similarly, community members with access to the Suppression tool may only use the tool in accordance with the Suppression Policy. When a Designated Community Member's access to a certain tool is revoked, for any reason, that member must destroy all Nonpublic Personal Data that they have as a result of that tool.

(b) Disclosure of nonpublic information. In the course of keeping the Sites and its users safe, Designated Community Members must sometimes disclose Nonpublic Personal Data to third parties. Disclosures of Nonpublic Personal Data are limited to:

(i) other Designated Community Members with the same access rights, or who otherwise are permitted to access the same Nonpublic Personal Data, to fulfill the duties outlined in the applicable policy for the access tool used;

(ii) service providers, carriers, or other third party vendors to assist in the targeting of IP blocks or the formulation of a complaint to relevant Internet Service Providers;

(iii) law enforcement, in cases where there is an immediate and credible threat of serious bodily harm;

(iv) authorized parties, with the express permission of the user whose nonpublic information is to be disclosed;

(v) the public, when it is a necessary and incidental consequence of a Designated Community Member blocking a sockpuppet or other abusive account; or

(vi) when authorized by the Wikimedia Foundation's Legal Department through an exception to this Policy.

While Designated Community Members may disclose Nonpublic Personal Data to third parties under the circumstances described above, they are under no obligation by the Foundation to do so. Please note, however, if a Designated Community Member chooses to disclose in a situation covered by (ii), or (iv), or if they are required by law to disclose to law enforcement, administrative bodies, or other governmental agencies, they must secure written approval from the Wikimedia Foundation by emailing check-disclosure wikimedia.org an explanation of the proposed disclosure at least ten (10) business days prior to such anticipated disclosure.

In the event that a Designated Community Member receives a request for Personal Data from law enforcement regarding an immediate and credible threat of bodily harm, as described above in (iii), and the Designated Community Member chooses to disclose Personal Data, they are permitted to do so without pre-authorization however that Designated Community Member should immediately contact check-disclosure wikimedia.org with an explanation of the disclosure. If the Designated Community Member chooses not to disclose Personal Data in response to an emergency request from law enforcement, that Designated Community Member should immediately email emergency wikimedia.org with details of the request so that it can be evaluated for possible Foundation disclosure.

All other formal and informal requests for user Nonpublic Personal Data (i.e. those not covered by one of the situations described above or those not acted upon by a community member with access rights), including subpoenas, from law enforcement, government agencies, attorneys, or other third parties should be directed to the Wikimedia Foundation's legal department at legal wikimedia.org.

Violations

Complaints about infringements of this Policy may be submitted to the Ombuds Commission. Breaches may result in conduct warnings or removal of advanced rights. Consistent with the Office Actions Policy, the Foundation may take such actions with or without recommendation from the Ombuds Commission, but barring extraordinary circumstances the Foundation will generally defer to appropriate community governance mechanisms for enforcement rather than take direct action.

Complaints about inappropriate actions taken under an exception to this Policy should be evaluated by the appropriate community governance mechanisms. Complaints may also be referred to the Foundation for review under the Office Actions Policy. If a complaint concerns the Privacy Policy's relevant section, then the Ombuds Commission may also review.

Complaints about Designated Community Members infringing confidentiality obligations or expectations that exist outside of this Policy and its exceptions should be evaluated by the appropriate community governance mechanisms. While the Foundation may not be a party to those confidentiality agreements or expectations, major breaches of community trust may result in loss of the Foundation's trust through application of the Office Actions Policy.

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