Contributor copyright investigations is a process intended to identify users who have repeatedly introduced copyright violations into many articles or uploaded many copyrighted images, typically over a long period of time, and to systematically remove this infringing material. The process begins with the filing of a CCI by an editor who notices a large-scale pattern of copyright violation by an individual contributor, and if approved, will lead to a survey of their complete contributions followed by indiscriminate removal of any material suspected to be infringing.

This process is intended only for large-scale systematic copyright violations. To list individual media files or articles for evaluation, see Wikipedia:Copyright problems or Wikipedia:Possibly unfree files.

Contributor copyright investigations
George Serdechny - various (often related to Russia) WikiEditor44 - animated TV series Ktr101 - American military Babasalichai - public relations GiW - Lithuanian military Tobby72 - various Pmronchi - various QadeemMusalman - Pakistani diplomacy Wtimock - biographies Kittybrewster - British peerage Jpullokaran - Kerala Ranchereach - Ohio politics Eurodog - musician biographies S710 - Moroccan biographies Ahmetyal - international relations Arilang1234 - China Epeefleche - Jewish biographies Logger9 - Physics Mibelz - Chess, Ukraine Communicat - War Dude95 - TV shows LRBurdak - India Xpclient - Microsoft Windows ItsLassieTime - children's stories Vanished 6551232 TyDwiki - TV shows Md iet - Islam Epson291 - Hebrew, Israel Gavin.collins - various Robertsch55 - Economics biographies P.K.Niyogi - India, Bangladesh Steve Pastor - music Darius Dhlomo - athletics LouisPhilippeCharles - cut/paste moves Richard Arthur Norton (1958- ) - images Ardfern - Ireland Banglapedia (source) - Bangladesh Дунгане - China, military George Burgess - British politics Managerarc - Indian/Pakistani movies Pohick2 - biographies Texas141 - Ohio Chewygum - Phillipine military Editor5807 - Isle of Wight Marknutley - Climate & biographies Rms125a@hotmail.com - biographies Razzsic - Pakistani military Rajasekhar1961 - India FlyingToaster - various Thetruthonly - Turks living overseas Racepacket - Olympics, universities, Virginia, Illinois Craigy144 - British monarchy, peerage, military history Richardshusr - Religion Derek R Bullamore - musicians Aiman abmajid - articles on Malaysia and highways Arab League - images related to Arabian diplomacy Jcuk - British peerage Singingdaisies - opera Paknur - Pakistan
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[edit] When should a CCI be started?

A CCI is a serious accusation, and doing so frivolously is a breach of the "no personal attacks" policy. In general, if you have an on-going dispute with another editor, you should avoid filing a CCI case against that editor, and seek larger input at an appropriate forum (such as the administrators noticeboard or the copyright cleanup project) instead.

As a rule of thumb, at least five instances of clear copyvios (copy/pasting of unlicensed third party material; clear derivative works) should be required to file a case.

[edit] How should a case be filed?

A new case should be filed using the template {{subst:CCI-request}}, which is to be placed underneath the requests header below.

{{subst:CCI-request
|user = the user subject to the CCI
|evidence = your reasoning for opening the case
}}

Remember to remain civil. Some contributors violate copyright from misunderstanding of copyright policies or laws. While it may be necessary to intervene to prevent future copyright issues, it is not necessary or helpful to treat individuals listed here discourteously. Good faith requests are welcome even if they should prove mistaken. However, please remember that this is a serious allegation and should not be made without evidence. Requests without evidence may be interpreted as harassment.

After submitting a case, notify the contributor by adding {{subst:CCI-notice}} ~~~~ to the bottom of his or her talk page. It is not necessary to notify individuals who are currently blocked for copyright infringement, even if temporarily.

[edit] Role of CCI clerks and admins

To verify:

• That the case is filed properly
• That concerns are substantiated - non-admin clerks may request admin review of deleted contribs where necessary if this is present in the evidence. A deletion log citing copyright concerns is verifiable evidence.
• Through a cursory check of the other contributions, that the problem goes past the evidence presented, warranting wider review.

To follow with one of three actions:

• Dismiss the case if inconclusive (and take appropriate action if the case was filed frivolously)
• Close the case if no significant evidence of further wide scale problems are found
• Open a contribution survey

[edit] Accepted cases

Accepted cases will lead to a contributor survey. A clerk or uninvolved admin will create the appropriate Contributor survey subpage and populate the contribution data. He or she will further notify any relevant Wikiprojects to ask for their assistance where appropriate and post a notice at Wikipedia:Administrators' noticeboard. Although a user found to be contributing copyrighted material may be subject to sanctions such as blocking in some cases, CCI is not concerned with these sanctions and they are left to other forums.

If contributors have been shown to have a history of extensive copyright violation, it may be assumed without further evidence that all of their major contributions are copyright violations, and they may be removed indiscriminately, in accordance with Wikipedia:Copyright violations. When such indiscriminate removal may be controversial or cause considerable collateral damage, an effort will be made to assemble a volunteer force sufficient to evaluate problematic contributions within a reasonable time. If insufficient volunteers are available to manage cleanup in a timely manner, presumptive wholesale removal be the only choice.

To participate in clean up, follow the link to its listing page. All contributors with no history of copyright problems are welcome to contribute to clean up. Additionally, contributors listed are encouraged to contribute to clean up of their own materials.

[edit] Closed investigations

After completion, any CCI case, including those dismissed, will be moved to the archive subpage.

[edit] Responding to a CCI case

If a user has requested evaluation of your contributions here, please remember that the purpose of this process is not to harass or embarrass you, but to ensure that Wikipedia remains compliant with copyright laws. You can best help by assisting, rather than hindering, investigation. If you believe that your contributions have not constituted a copyright problem under Wikipedia's policies, please succinctly provide your rationale. If it should prove that the contributor who made the request is mistaken, this will be noted and the section archived. If, on the other hand, concerns are substantiated, you may best demonstrate a willingness to comply with copyright policies by helping to identify and address problems.

Once an investigation has opened, you are advised to watch the investigation subpage if you are interested in what actions are taken. You should not expect to receive individual notices of articles or images that are deleted or blanked for copyright concerns in the course of a CCI.