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Latest revision as of 09:31, 10 January 2025

• WP:RFC/NAME
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This page is for bringing attention to usernames which may be in violation of Misplaced Pages's username policy. Before listing a username here, consider if it should be more appropriately reported elsewhere, or if it needs to be reported at all:

• Report blatantly inappropriate usernames, such as usernames that are obscene or inflammatory, to Misplaced Pages:Usernames for administrator attention.
• For other cases involving vandalism, personal attacks or other urgent issues, try Misplaced Pages:Administrators' noticeboard/Incidents; blatant vandalism can also be reported at Misplaced Pages:Administrator intervention against vandalism, which is sometimes a better option.

Do NOT post here if:

• the user in question has made no recent edits.
• you wish to have the block of a user reviewed. Instead, discuss the block with the blocking administrator (see also Misplaced Pages:Blocking policy § Unblocking).

Before adding a name here you MUST ensure that the user in question:

• has been warned about their username (with e.g. {{subst:uw-username}}) and has been allowed time to address the concern on their user talk page.
• has disagreed with the concern, refused to change their username and/or continued to edit without replying to the warning.
• is not already blocked.

If, after having followed all the steps above, you still believe the username violates Misplaced Pages's username policy, you may list it here with an explanation of which part of the username policy you think has been violated. After posting, please alert the user of the discussion (with e.g. {{subst:UsernameDiscussion}}). You may also invite others who have expressed concern about the username to comment on the discussion by use of this template.

Add new requests below, using the syntax {{subst:rfcn1|username|2=reason ~~~~}}.

Tools: Special:ListUsers, Special:BlockList

Reports

Please remember that this is not a vote, rather, it is a place where editors can come when they are unsure what to do with a username, and to get outside opinions (hence it's named "requests for comment"). There are no set time limits to the period of discussion.

Place your report below this line. Please put new reports on the top of the list.

TheGEICOgecko

TheGEICOgecko (talk · contribs)

I have been informed that my username is inappropriate (to non-American users unfamiliar with the username, it is a reference to "The GEICO gecko", the mascot of the car insurance company, GEICO). When I first made my account, I believe I was clearly following username policy, as I steered clear from anything that might even remotely be seen as promotional by not editing any car insurance related articles, and I am not affiliated with the company in any way. However, reading the username policy again, at least it's fairly different from what I recall, more explicitly saying that any mention of a company is not allowed.

I just want to confirm here whether my username truly breaks username policy. The username is something I would really like to keep and is something I use a lot, and I would like to put extra effort to ensure the username change is necessary. In particular, according to WP:USERSTAGENAME, a stage name, pen name, or other nickname that uniquely identifies someone can be considered appropriate, even if it might otherwise be a promotional name. I use variations of "the geico gecko" (e.g., TheGEICOgecko, thegeicogecko, The GEICO gecko, etc) as my online name pretty much everywhere that I've been allowed to, including social media sites, and more official settings like medical, financial, and educational institution websites, among others. It is effectively the name I go by as far as my online prescence is concerned, and hope that I can keep my name for that reason. If needed, I can give proof of this usage. To my knowledge (though of course I could be mistaken about this), I am the only person on the Internet that widely uses this name, as I have found success claiming the username on a number of websites with a large base of users. Therefore, I would argue it falls under the requiremenet that the name "The GEICO gecko" is a nickname uniquely identifiable to one person, me. Therefore, the username "TheGEICOgecko" would be allowed.

Additionally, I will paste here what I have on my profile page, which is what I would continue to ensure to adhere by, in order to avoid any slightest possibility that my account is used for promotional purposes in favor of the company:

"I do not work for GEICO, am not associated with GEICO, and am in no way sponsored by GEICO. My username refers to a car insurance company in the same way one would make a username referring to any other object or concept, and I have decided to make a username referring to GEICO. To avoid any controversy concerning my username, I will abstain from editing, adding, or otherwise directly interacting with any articles relating to car insurance." TheGEICOgecko (talk) 05:37, 10 January 2025 (UTC)

• Allow This seems fine to me. * Pppery * _{it has begun...} 05:49, 10 January 2025 (UTC)
• Allow. It's fine to me, provided that you don't edit articles that relate to (non-health) insurance and/or Berkshire Hathaway. If you do start to go down that road, it might be a bit confusing for editors, and I would advise either a declared alt be used or a username change occur. — Red-tailed hawk _(nest) 06:31, 10 January 2025 (UTC)
• Allow. There is nothing in the username policy that says a username cannot be that of a fictional character, even one that is used in advertising. I think Red-tailed hawk's advice is sound. 331dot (talk) 09:31, 10 January 2025 (UTC)

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