<s>
WikiScanner	B-Application
(	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
Wikipedia	B-Application
Scanner	I-Application
)	O
was	O
a	O
publicly	O
searchable	O
database	O
that	O
linked	O
anonymous	O
edits	O
on	O
Wikipedia	O
to	O
the	O
organizations	O
where	O
those	O
edits	O
apparently	O
originated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
did	O
this	O
by	O
cross-referencing	O
the	O
edits	O
with	O
data	O
on	O
the	O
owners	O
of	O
the	O
associated	O
block	O
of	O
IP	B-Protocol
addresses	I-Protocol
,	O
though	O
it	O
did	O
not	O
investigate	O
edits	O
made	O
under	O
a	O
username	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
his	O
"	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
FAQ	O
"	O
Griffith	O
stated	O
his	O
belief	O
that	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
could	O
help	O
make	O
Wikipedia	O
more	O
reliable	O
for	O
controversial	O
topics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
also	O
indicated	O
that	O
he	O
had	O
never	O
been	O
employed	O
by	O
the	O
Wikimedia	O
Foundation	O
and	O
claimed	O
his	O
work	O
on	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
was	O
"	O
100%	O
noncommercial	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
21	O
,	O
2012	O
,	O
a	O
research	O
group	O
from	O
released	O
an	O
open-source	O
clone	O
of	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
called	O
WikiWatchdog	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
April	O
2013	O
,	O
attempts	O
to	O
run	O
"	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
Classic	O
"	O
from	O
wikiscanner.virgil.gr	O
returned	O
to	O
the	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
home	O
page	O
,	O
which	O
identified	O
itself	O
as	O
"	O
WIKIWATCHER.COM	O
"	O
;	O
and	O
invoking	O
"	O
WikiScanner2	O
PreviewNew	O
!	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2007	O
,	O
Virgil	O
Griffith	O
said	O
he	O
had	O
to	O
take	O
wikiscanner.gr	O
down	O
,	O
as	O
it	O
was	O
costing	O
him	O
"	O
several	O
thousand	O
USD	O
per	O
month.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
claimed	O
to	O
have	O
connected	O
the	O
organizations	O
to	O
their	O
IP	B-Protocol
address	I-Protocol
with	O
the	O
assistance	O
of	O
the	O
IP2Location	O
database	O
,	O
and	O
through	O
comparison	O
had	O
found	O
"	O
187,529	O
different	O
organizations	O
with	O
at	O
least	O
one	O
anonymous	O
Wikipedia	O
edit.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
WikiScanner	B-Application
only	O
worked	O
on	O
anonymous	O
edits	O
,	O
which	O
are	O
made	O
under	O
an	O
IP	B-Protocol
address	I-Protocol
,	O
not	O
edits	O
by	O
anyone	O
logged	O
in	O
under	O
a	O
username	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
FAQ	O
noted	O
that	O
edits	O
could	O
not	O
be	O
positively	O
attributed	O
to	O
representatives	O
of	O
a	O
company	O
,	O
only	O
to	O
a	O
computer	O
logged	O
into	O
a	O
company	O
's	O
network	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
21	O
,	O
2007	O
,	O
satirist	O
Stephen	O
Colbert	O
who	O
had	O
long	O
featured	O
stories	O
about	O
Wikipedia	O
and	O
its	O
"	O
truthiness	O
"	O
on	O
his	O
program	O
mocked	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
creator	O
Virgil	O
Griffith	O
's	O
ambivalent	O
stance	O
on	O
anonymity	O
on	O
Wikipedia	O
,	O
declaring	O
it	O
the	O
"	O
right	O
"	O
of	O
corporations	O
and	O
governments	O
to	O
participate	O
in	O
the	O
democratic	O
process	O
of	O
deciding	O
what	O
is	O
and	O
is	O
not	O
true	O
on	O
Wikipedia	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
the	O
BBC	O
from	O
August	O
15	O
,	O
2007	O
,	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
found	O
that	O
some	O
editorial	O
contributions	O
to	O
Wikipedia	O
had	O
originated	O
from	O
computers	O
operated	O
by	O
the	O
Diebold	O
company	O
,	O
the	O
Democratic	O
Congressional	O
Campaign	O
Committee	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
Vatican	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Times	O
reported	O
that	O
an	O
IP	B-Protocol
address	I-Protocol
at	O
the	O
BBC	O
had	O
made	O
edits	O
to	O
Wikipedia	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
its	O
story	O
on	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
,	O
the	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
too	O
admitted	O
that	O
edits	O
had	O
been	O
made	O
from	O
its	O
own	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Maltastar.com	O
from	O
August	O
16	O
,	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
has	O
shown	O
edits	O
by	O
other	O
large	O
organizations	O
,	O
including	O
Amnesty	O
International	O
,	O
Apple	O
Inc.	O
,	O
ChevronTexaco	O
,	O
Coca-Cola	O
,	O
the	O
British	O
Conservative	O
Party	O
,	O
Dell	O
Computers	O
,	O
EA	O
Games	O
,	O
Exxon	O
Mobil	O
,	O
the	O
FBI	O
,	O
The	O
Guardian	O
,	O
Microsoft	O
,	O
MySpace	B-Application
,	O
the	O
National	O
Rifle	O
Association	O
of	O
America	O
,	O
Nestlé	O
,	O
News	O
of	O
the	O
World	O
,	O
the	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
,	O
the	O
Government	O
of	O
Portugal	O
,	O
the	O
US	O
Republican	O
Party	O
,	O
Reuters	O
,	O
Sony	O
,	O
the	O
United	O
Nations	O
,	O
Walmart	O
,	O
and	O
a	O
dog	O
breeding	O
association	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Information	O
found	O
using	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
showed	O
126	O
anonymous	O
edits	O
from	O
the	O
department	O
to	O
articles	O
on	O
sometimes	O
controversial	O
issues	O
and	O
on	O
government	O
ministers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Wikiscanner	B-Application
also	O
identified	O
Australian	O
Department	O
of	O
Defence	O
(	O
DoD	O
)	O
employees	O
as	O
having	O
made	O
over	O
5,000	O
edits	O
,	O
prompting	O
an	O
unprecedented	O
announcement	O
from	O
the	O
DoD	O
to	O
block	O
Defence	O
staff	O
from	O
editing	O
Wikipedia	O
in	O
case	O
edits	O
were	O
interpreted	O
as	O
official	O
comment	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
story	O
was	O
also	O
covered	O
by	O
The	O
Independent	O
,	O
which	O
stated	O
that	O
many	O
"	O
censorial	O
interventions	O
"	O
by	O
editors	O
with	O
vested	O
interests	O
on	O
a	O
variety	O
of	O
articles	O
in	O
Wikipedia	O
had	O
been	O
discovered	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
18	O
,	O
2007	O
,	O
Fortune	O
magazine	O
mentioned	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
in	O
the	O
96th	O
of	O
its	O
list	O
of	O
the	O
"	O
101	O
Dumbest	O
Moments	O
in	O
Business	O
"	O
,	O
saying	O
,	O
"	O
A	O
Washington	O
Post	O
employee	O
is	O
found	O
to	O
have	O
changed	O
a	O
reference	O
to	O
the	O
owner	O
of	O
a	O
rival	O
paper	O
from	O
Philip	O
Anschutz	O
to	O
Charles	O
Manson	O
,	O
while	O
someone	O
at	O
The	O
New	O
York	O
Times	O
added	O
the	O
word	O
'	O
jerk	O
 '	O
12	O
times	O
to	O
the	O
entry	O
on	O
George	O
W	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
period	O
of	O
May	O
27	O
to	O
June	O
4	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
edits	O
originating	O
from	O
an	O
IP	B-Protocol
address	I-Protocol
belonging	O
to	O
Industry	O
Canada	O
were	O
made	O
to	O
the	O
Jim	O
Prentice	O
(	O
Federal	O
Minister	O
of	O
Industry	O
)	O
article	O
on	O
Wikipedia	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Wikipedia	O
co-founder	O
Jimmy	O
Wales	O
spoke	O
enthusiastically	O
about	O
WikiScanner	B-Application
,	O
noting	O
that	O
"	O
It	O
brings	O
an	O
additional	O
level	O
of	O
transparency	O
to	O
what	O
's	O
going	O
on	O
at	O
Wikipedia	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
"	O
fabulous	O
and	O
I	O
strongly	O
support	O
it.	O
"	O
</s>
