Training modules/Dealing with online harassment/slides/wikimedia-commons-versus-local-projects

Image-based problems: Wikimedia Commons versus local projects

Most images found on our projects are hosted on Wikimedia Commons. You can identify if an image is hosted there, rather than on a local Wikimedia project, by the appearance of the "View on Commons" tab along the top of the page. There will also be a note just below the image stating that the file is accessible on Commons.

Wikimedia Commons has a guideline around images of identifiable people which can be useful in situations like this. It states: "The subject's consent is usually needed for publishing a photograph of an identifiable individual taken in a private place, and Commons expects this even if local laws do not require it."

Wikimedia events are usually considered private places. This can be less obvious if the event is held somewhere that is normally open to the public, like a library or a university. A well-run event will have either something to sign if you are okay with photographs being taken or, more commonly, stickers or lanyards to indicate you are not comfortable being in photographs.

Even in public places, country-specific rules exist on consent. These rules can be complicated, and not all are legally binding. Check whether or not the country in which the offending photograph was taken is covered by a rule such as this.

"Selfies" or other images of editors which are uploaded by themselves are fairly common on Wikimedia Commons. Of course, while these are usually fine, users should be aware that images of themselves have the potential to be abused.

Images hosted on local projects are processed slightly differently. Policies on this tend to vary by project. On most, the unauthorized posting of someone's photograph counts as the release of personally identifying information.