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Wikipedia:Temporary accounts

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"WP:TEMP" and "WP:TA" redirect here. For other uses, seeWikipedia:TEMP (disambiguation) andWikipedia:WikiProject Textile arts.

Wikipedia information page

This is aninformation page.

It is neither anencyclopedia article nor one ofWikipedia's policies or guidelines; rather, its purpose is to explain certain aspects of Wikipedia's norms, customs, technicalities, or practices. It may reflect differing levels ofconsensus andvetting.

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This page in a nutshell: Logged-out editors are now identified by a temporary account such as~2025-58206-73 instead of their IP address.Some editors can still see their IPs.

Temporary accounts are automatically assigned to unregistered editors. They replace the practice of identifying unregistered editors by theirIP addresses, which are no longer exposed publicly for their privacy and security. The transition to temporary accounts helps editors avoidpolitical persecution in territories with animus toward the English Wikipedia while additionally providing a layer of prevention hinderingdenial-of-service attacks against editors.

The accounts have the effect of obscuring the connection of unregistered editors to their IPs to casual viewers. Users with some extended rights like administrators and CheckUsers, as well as users in thetemporary account IP viewer (TAIV) user group, are able to reveal temporary users' IP addresses and all contributions made by temporary accounts from a specific IP address or range.

They wereenabled on English Wikipedia on November 4, 2025.

How do temporary accounts work?

Editing from a temporary account

When a logged-out user completes an edit or a logged action for the first time, anHTTP cookie is set in this user's browser and a temporary account tied with this cookie is automatically created for them. All subsequent actions by the temporary account user will be attributed to this username, as long as the same device (computer, smartphone, tablet etc) and browser is used.

A record of the IP address used at the time of each edit will be stored for 90 days after the edit. Users with thetemporary account IP viewer (TAIV) user right are able to see the underlying IP addresses.

This account's name follows the pattern:~2025-58206-73 (a tilde, year of creation, an auto-generated serial number broken up with hyphens grouping up to 5 digits at a time).^[a] Users cannot choose or control the name of the temporary account, and temporary accountscannot be renamed.

As long as the cookie exists, you will be automatically logged into this temporary account, meaning all edits made from this device and browser will be attributed to this temporary account, even if the IP address changes. The user can manually deactivate access to their temporary account by ending their session, accessible under the user icon or by visitingSpecial:UserLogout, or by clearing their cookies. Also, any edits while in incognito or private browsing mode are associated with a cookie which perishes as soon as that incognito window is closed. Further edits would then create a new temporary account and set a new cookie. If your browser blocks cookie creation, each edit will be attributed to a new temporary account, and you become subject to the limitations listed below. The cookie will expire 90 days after its creation, see account expiration below.

If you use a different device or browser, a new different temporary account will be created for you. You cannot access the same temporary account from different browsers or devices. Consider creating an account in order to be able to log in from different browsers or devices.

As a measure against vandalism, there are two limitations on the creation of temporary accounts:^[specify]

There has to be a minimum of 10 minutes between subsequent temporary account creations from the same IP (or /64 range in case of IPv6).
There can be a maximum of 6 temporary accounts created from an IP (or /64 range) within a period of 24 hours

Account expiration

Temporary accounts will automatically expire 90 days after creation. This means the account is no longer accessible. Any logs of actions taken by the temporary account remain intact – the temporary account's edits and user talk page remain accessible and in page histories even after expiry.

A new temporary account will be created when the user edits or performs a logged action again.

This fact, that unregistered editors (that edits continuously) get new temporary accounts every 90 days, should not be taken to mean you get a new "identity" every 90 days. Temporary accounts are furnished a very basic level of privacy only, and there are several circumstances where your edits with one temporary account will be publicly connected to edits with previous temporary accounts. For example, if you participate in a talk page discussion just as your temporary account expires, it is possible another editor will perceive you talking with two accounts, which is normally frowned upon. Please see§ Rules about IP information disclosure below, and our policy on using multiple accounts atWP:SOCKPUPPET.

Communication

Temporary accounts can bethanked andpinged, and their talk page is not shared with other editors using the same IP address.

Temporary account IP viewer user right

How to enable IP Reveal

Administrators may grant thetemporary account IP viewer (TAIV) user right to non-administrators who meet thecriteria for granting. Importantly, an editor must make an explicit request for the permission (e.g. atWP:PERM/TAIV)—administrators arenot permitted to assign the right without a request.

Administrators willautomatically be able to see temporary account IP information once they have accepted theAccess to Temporary Account IP Addresses Policy viaSpecial:Preferences or via the onboarding dialog which comes up after temporary accounts are deployed.

Impact for administrators

It is possible to block many abusers by just blocking their temporary accounts. A blocked person won't be able to create new temporary accounts quickly if the admin selects theautoblock option.
It is still possible to block an IP address or IP range.
Temporary accounts will not be retroactively applied to contributions made before the deployment. OnSpecial:Contributions, you will be able to see existing IP user contributions, but not new contributions made by temporary accounts on that IP address. Instead, you should useSpecial:IPContributions for this (see a video about IPContributions in a gallery below).

"Hard blocks" (those withautoblock enabled) affect all temporary and named accounts on the same IP as the blocked user. The effects of "soft blocks" (those without autoblock) vary depending on the target.

The target of the block is an IP address or a range of IP addresses
Block configuration		Result
Account creation	Logged-in users from this IP	Temporary accounts on the IP/range	Named accounts on the IP/range	Can users on the IP/range create new ...
Account creation	Logged-in users from this IP	Temporary accounts on the IP/range	Named accounts on the IP/range	temporary accounts?	named accounts?
Not blocked	Not blocked	cannot edit	can edit	cannot create	can create
Blocked	Not blocked		can edit		cannot create
Not blocked	Blocked		cannot edit		can create
Blocked	Blocked		cannot edit		cannot create

The target of the block is a temporary account or a named account
Block configuration		Result
Account creation	Any IP addresses used	The target account	Can the target account create new named accounts while logged in?	Can the autoblocked IPs create new ...
Account creation	Any IP addresses used	The target account		temporary accounts?	named accounts?
Not blocked	Not autoblocked	cannot edit	can create	—
Blocked	Not autoblocked	cannot edit	cannot create^[b]	—
Not blocked	Autoblocked	cannot edit, nor can any autoblocked accounts^[c]	can create	cannot create^[c]	can create
Blocked	Autoblocked	cannot edit, nor can any autoblocked accounts^[c]	cannot create	cannot create^[c]	cannot create^[c]

Rules about IP information disclosure

This section is an excerpt fromWikipedia:Temporary account IP viewer § What can and cannot be said.[edit]

It is never a violation of the TAIV disclosure policy to make a statement that does not rely on use of the TAIV tool. In particular, this means thatpurely behavioral comparisons of TAs to old IPs or TAs to named accounts are not governed by that policy. (e.g. "The edits atSun andMoon by ~2025-12345-67, 192.0.2.1, andUser:Example appear to be by the same person.")
- However, TAIVs should take care not to give the impression that they are inappropriately disclosing TAIV information. Especially in the case of TA-to-IP behavioral comparisons, it is recommended to explicitly state that TAIV was not used.
Publicly linking a TA to another TA is allowed if "reasonably believed to be necessary". (e.g. "~2025-12345-67 and ~2025-12345-68 are on the same IP, so I am counting their reverts together toward3RR", but not "Hey ~2025-12345-68, you did some good editing as ~2025-12345-67".)
- The same is generally true of metadata about an IP address, such as itsISP, whether it appears to be a proxy,^[d] or a general location, unless this information is precise enough that it could plausibly be used to identify the user to a greater degree than they have self-disclosed. Note that some ISPs are very small or even belong to a single person, and that some countries havevery small populations or havevery few English Wikipedia editors. Avoid disclosing more information than necessary; when feasible, favor relative terms like "~2025-12345-67 and ~2025-12345-68 are on the same ISP and geolocate to the same area".^[e]
Publicizing an IP address gained through TAIV access isgenerally not allowed (e.g. "~2025-12345-67 previously edited as 192.0.2.1" or "~2025-12345-67's IP address is 192.0.2.1")
- However, admins are allowed to make blocks that, by their timing, imply a connection between an account and an IP (e.g. indefblocking ~2025-12345-67 and ~2025-12345-68 and then moments later blocking 192.0.2.1 for a week). The other restrictions discussed here still apply to the admin's block summary and any other public comments on the blocks. This may sometimes mean that administrators need to be vague in describing IP blocks; for instance, if a TAIV requests that the IP underlying several TAs be blocked, the blocking admin should respond with something like "Resolved" rather than "Blocked underlying IP".
- And when "reasonably believed to be necessary", exceptions can be made at appropriate policy-enforcement venues. For any recent disruption, it will usually be enough to tell another TAIV or admin to look at an IP themself, so this exception rarely applies to short-term cases. But it may apply e.g. tolong-term abuse pages or particularly complexsockpuppet investigations. However, the disclosure should berevision-deleted as soon as it ceases to be necessary.^[f]
Saying that a TA isnot using a specific IP or range (e.g. "~2025-12345-67's IP puts them far away from 192.0.2.1") does not explicitly violate the disclosure policy; but if a TAIV says this in one case, and does not say it in another, this can lead to editors assuming a connection in the latter case.Vaguer phrasing like "I do not see evidence that ~2025-12345-67 is evading a block" is preferable.
CheckUsers will generally not publicly link named accounts to TAs, since this effectivelydiscloses their IP address to any TAIV or admin.

Useful tools for patrollers

TheUser Info card feature, which can be enabled atPreferences →Appearance →Advanced options →Enable theuser info card, makes it possible for anyone to see the approximate count of temporary accounts active on the same IP address range and allows users to view if a user has opted-in to view temporary account IPs.

Special:IPContributions allows viewing all edits and temporary accounts connected to a specific IP address or IP range. Similarly,Special:GlobalContributions supports global search for a given temporary account's activity.

The auto-reveal feature (see video below) allows users with the right permissions to automatically reveal all IP addresses for a limited time window.

Videos

How to useSpecial:IPContributions
How automatic IP reveal works
How to use IP Info
How to use User Info

v t e Wikipediaaccounts andgovernance
Unregistered users	Why create an account? Create an account Request an account Unregistered editors are human too IP addresses are not people IP hopper Temporary accounts
Registered users	New account Logging in Reset passwords Username policy Changing username Usernames for administrator attention Unified login or SUL Alternate account
Account security	Password strength requirements User account security Personal security practices Two-factor authentication 2FA for AWB Committed identity On privacy, confidentiality and discretion Compromised accounts How to not get outed
Blocks, bans, sanctions, global actions	Blocking policy FAQ Admin's guide Tools Autoblock Appealing a block Guide to appealing blocks UTRS Unblock Ticket Request System Blocking IP addresses Range blocks IPv6 Open proxies Banning policy ArbCom appeals Sanctions Personal sanctions General sanctions Contentious topics andLog Essay Indef ≠ infinite Long-term abuse Standard offer Global actions
Related to accounts	Sockpuppetry Single-purpose account Sleeper account Spam-only account Vandalism-only account Wikibreak Enforcer Retiring Courtesy vanishing Clean start Quiet return Account deletion
User groups andglobal user groups	Requests for permissions Admin instructions Admin guide Account creator PERM (Auto) confirmed PERM Autopatrolled PERM AutoWikiBrowser PERM Bot Request Edit filter helper Request Event coordinator PERM Extended confirmed PERM File mover PERM IP block exempt Request Mass message sender PERM New page reviewer PERM Page mover PERM Pending changes reviewer PERM Rollback PERM Template editor PERM Temporary account IP viewer PERM Global rights policy Volunteer Response Team
Advanced user groups	Administrator RfA Bureaucrat RfB CheckUser andOversight Request Edit filter manager Request Interface administrator Request Founder Importer Researcher
Committees and related	Arbitration Committee Bot approvals group Functionaries Clerks SPI clerks ArbCom clerks
Governance	Administration FAQ Formal organization Editorial oversight and control Quality control Wikimedia Foundation Board Founder's seat Meta-Wiki Proposals WikiProjects Elections Policies and guidelines Petitions Noticeboards Consensus Dispute resolution Reforms

Notes

^Serial numbers are derived from the temporary account'sordinal value in the sequence of all temporary accounts created across all WMF wikis in the current year, which is thenremapped to another number with the same number of digits to avoid confusion between accounts created close together in time. As a result, the digits after the year in a serial number do not necessarily tell you which of two temporary accounts is older.
^Cookie issues may sometimes allow temp accounts to create accounts when blocked with account creation blocked and autoblock disabled. Note that blocking with these settings is not very effective even when it works correctly, since a user can always log out and then create a new account. Because temp accounts can be both exited and created without conscious effort, a temp-account user blocked in this way may even do this without intending to.
^^a ^b ^cAutoblock length is limited to 24 hours from each time the blocked account attempts to edit a page, even if the underlying block is indefinite. Because temp accounts are forcibly logged out after 90 days, hardblocking a temp account cannot trigger autoblocks any later than that, regardless of block length.
^However, seefoundation:Legal:Wikimedia IP Information Tool Policy § Use and disclosure of IP information: You may only disseminate proxy-related informationas reasonably required.
^This sub-bullet is not based on the TAIV disclosure policy, but rather discussion with WMF Legal, who haveexplicitly endorsed this interpretation of policy.
^For convenience' sake, it may be preferable totransclude the disclosure from some subpage, e.g.Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/Example/TAIV disclosure, so that when it is laterredacted and revision-deleted this does not also sweep up a large number of intervening edits.