Vandalism is when a user (or multiple users or edits at once) makes unhelpful, spam, or troll edits to an article or a talk page on Conservapedia. Vandals will typically add spam/random content, or blank out an article; these are common ways to spot vandals.
Long-term abuse
Long-term vandals create very many sockpuppet accounts. Do not attempt to discuss with them, whether through edit summaries or talk page messages. These people will not stop vandalizing just because you politely asked them to. They in fact want you to react to them. Vandals know that their vandalism is quickly reverted; they take pleasure in the reactions of Conservapedia editors.
Motivations of vandals
Most vandals are children or teenagers. Mature adults and those teenagers who are mature enough do not find vandalism amusing. Those adults who do love vandalism often suffer from low self-esteem and take pride in destroying others' work. A few vandals with enough technical expertise have created numerous upon numerous accounts for vandalism. They are easily spotted and know this, and live to see others react wildly to their vandalism. Do not be one of these "others". Unlike Wikipedia, Conservapedia does not create numerous webpages about vandals,[1] which simply incites their vandalism efforts. Many vandals also vandalize other wikis such as Wikipedia. A minority of vandals are politically motivated; they most often stop vandalizing once they realize that Conservapedia writers quickly discover and undo vandalism.
Dealing with vandalism
If you suspect vandalism or parody in article content, hang the {{Template:CPPOV}}.
Notes
- ↑ See the huge list Wikipedia:Long-term abuse of repeat vandals, spammers, trolls and misinformation pushers.