Legal protection

This page discusses legal protection.

Wikimedia Foundation statements

A Word of Caution

We would like to remind editors that, even when you are acting in good faith and doing good work, you are legally responsible for your activities on any Wikimedia site and, therefore, should be mindful of the laws governing the jurisdiction(s) to which you are subject. Every person has their own level of risk tolerance. We advise you to use your best judgment, and be cautious about contributing, editing, removing, or otherwise altering anything you are not comfortable taking responsibility for, or that you are unsure about.

Unfortunately, the Foundation’s legal department can only represent the best interests of the Foundation. That is an ethical requirement of the American legal profession. This means we cannot give legal advice to or serve as lawyers for community members, volunteers, or staff members in their personal capacity. We will always provide support to the extent we can, including, depending on the nature of the case, possible referral to the Legal Fees Assistance Program or our policy on the Defense of contributors when appropriate, securing of local independent counsel to defend individual users, or providing public support.