checkuser — English Dictionary

Noun

1. A user who is granted access to view the IP addresses of wiki users, so as to identify sock puppets etc.

   Examples

   More examples (3)

   Essjay is serving a second term as chair of the mediation committee. He is also an admin, a bureaucrat, and a checkuser, which means that he is one of fourteen Wikipedians authorized to trace IP addresses in cases of suspected abuse.

   In Wikipedia this kind of activities is performed by members who assume distinct social roles, for instance the quality of the articles is addressed by reviewers and rollbackers, and the users' management is handled by checkusers and account creators.

   Checkusers are allowed to check IP addresses of users, usually to confirm or disprove that one person is editing from several accounts. Although formally one does not have to be an administrator to become a checkuser, in practice only some administrators receive these rights.