Talk:Yahoo

COI edit request: Duplicate content from Criticism of Yahoo

Hi! I'm a COI editor for Yahoo through my employer, Porter Novelli. I'm working on some proposed updates for this article, but first wanted to raise a more general question about how much this article should overlap with Criticism of Yahoo.

WP:SPINOFF states that Summary sections are used in a broader article to briefly cover the content of more detailed subarticles. However, the Similar Page Checker tool shows that this page is 46% similar to Criticism of Yahoo, and Duplication Detector identified numerous paragraphs that are verbatim between the two articles, including:

• the entirety of the Criticism section, except for the two sentences under "DMCA notice to whistleblower" and "Censorship of private emails affiliated with Occupy Wall Street protests" – the other 23 paragraphs are verbatim copies
• commentary on the 2010 Yahoo! Groups remodel
• 3 paragraphs on Scott Ard's lawsuit
• the paragraph on paid inclusion in 2004
• the first paragraph on data breaches
• the paragraph on the Flickr redesign
• the paragraph on the Fox IT malware attack

This seems to have initially come about as part of a plan to merge the two articles, but Criticism of Yahoo passed its AFD nomination, resulting in the redundancy. The overall effect, with a Criticism section almost as long as the History section, feels WP:UNDUE, which is I suspect why the content fork to the designated Criticism article was first created.

I propose converting the itemized content above into summary format and incorporating it into the History section rather than keeping it in a designated WP:CSECTION. Happy to take a pass at drafting this if other editors are aligned, but wanted to flag here first in case I was missing something about the duplication of content. Alternatively/additionally, I could rework "Criticism" as "Reception" (per WP:POVFORK, If possible, refrain from using "criticism" and instead use neutral terms such as "perception" or "reception"; if the word "criticism" must be used, make sure that such criticism considers both the merits and faults, and is not entirely negative), moving select items into History as appropriate.

Would love any feedback here to help ensure this article reflects best practices. Thank you! Mary Gaulke (talk) 15:18, 15 May 2026 (UTC)

@LWG, Homo ergaster, Pats322, and Finell: Pinging some folks who have worked on this article in the past few months, in case you'd like to weigh in on the above. Thank you! Mary Gaulke (talk) 13:31, 18 May 2026 (UTC)

Thanks for the ping. My only involvement with this article was to excise a slew of ChatGPT text that was added a while back. I don't plan to be further involved here at this time. -- LWG ^{talk (VOPOV)} 15:25, 18 May 2026 (UTC)

What do you think is most urgent: deleting Criticism of Yahoo or trimming Yahoo#Criticism? ~Kvng (talk) 19:44, 17 September 2026 (UTC)

Given the consensus to retain Criticism of Yahoo, I think condensing Yahoo#Criticism (and the other duplicate content in this article) to a summary makes sense. Per the discussion below, I've prepared a new edit request to do this – just don't want to jump the gun sharing it while the RfC is still open. Mary Gaulke (talk) 00:19, 18 September 2026 (UTC)

Reply 4-JUL-2026

  Please use WP:NPOVN, WP:WPTECH or WP:RfC  

• The {{Edit COI}} template is for specific, actionable requests that a reviewer can singly respond to.
• The COI editor appears to be seeking generalized feedback from other editors, in which case, other, more appropriate tools can be used, including:

1. The neutral point of view noticeboard
2. One or more relevant WikiProjects, such as WP:WPTECH.
3. Requests for comments

Regards,  Spintendo  10:18, 4 July 2026 (UTC)

Lost market share to Facebook?

This is quoted prominently but I think it’s over-egging it. Lost market share to Google yes but to Facebook less so. Does anyone have a decent citation for the Facebook claim? SirSiliconBones (talk) 10:48, 13 June 2026 (UTC)

RfC: Duplicate content from Criticism of Yahoo

How much should the contents of Yahoo duplicate Criticism of Yahoo? Per a diff of the latest version of each article and Duplication Detector, the two articles currently contain 29 closely paraphrased or identical paragraphs, including all of the Criticism section except for the "DMCA notice to whistleblower" and "Censorship of private emails affiliated with Occupy Wall Street protests" subsections. Mary Gaulke (talk) 03:54, 11 September 2026 (UTC)

• Comment Flagging that I'm a COI editor for Yahoo through my employer, Porter Novelli. I'm opening this RfC at the suggestion of Spintendo above, following attempted outreach to past editors of this article, WP:NPOVN, and WP:WPTECH. As I mentioned above, the duplication of content seems to have initially come about as part of a plan to merge the two articles, but Criticism of Yahoo passed its AFD nomination, resulting in the redundancy. I appreciate any input on how to address this. Thank you!

Mary Gaulke (talk) 04:00, 11 September 2026 (UTC)

Why do we need an RfC? I see no evidence anyone disagrees with you. Seems like what's needed is for an editor to actually do the work. Agree? JerryGraf (talk) 13:20, 11 September 2026 (UTC)

I believe so, but I hadn't really heard feedback either way, and I didn't want to overstep in unilaterally proposing a rewrite, given my COI. Sounds like I'm on the right track, so I can put together an edit request with condensed/reorganized language, barring objection from anyone else. Thank you! Mary Gaulke (talk) 20:29, 12 September 2026 (UTC)

Yes. I'm not that interested in this topic, but if you made the edit request straightforward, I'd be happy to make it. JerryGraf (talk) 21:43, 12 September 2026 (UTC)

I think a potential first step would be to rewrite Yahoo#Criticism as a single paragraph summarizing Criticism of Yahoo (retaining the {{Main}} link). How much duplication do you think this would address? ~Kvng (talk) 00:31, 18 September 2026 (UTC)

There's some duplicate content in Yahoo#History that could be addressed separately, but the Criticism section is the bulk of it. I took a shot at condensing into three paragraphs:

In 2009, the Electronic Frontier Foundation criticized Yahoo for sending a DMCA takedown notice to whistleblower website Cryptome for posting details about obtaining private information from Yahoo subscribers. The company also censored private emails affiliated with Occupy Wall Street protests, apologizing and attributing the action to a mistake. Additionally, Yahoo profited from partnerships with adware and spyware distributors whose pop-up advertisements appeared on users' computers, with a former employee stating in 2006 that the company adjusted ad frequency based on revenue needs.

Yahoo's cooperation with censorship in China drew severe criticism. The company provided user information to Chinese authorities that enabled the prosecution of journalists and dissidents, including Shi Tao, sentenced to ten years in prison in 2005 for sending censorship directives through a Yahoo email account, and Wang Xiaoning, arrested in 2002 after Yahoo assisted authorities by providing account information. In February 2006, Yahoo's General Counsel denied knowledge of these cases to Congress, but evidence surfaced in July 2007 showing Yahoo had received explicit government warrants requesting user data. In August 2007, human rights organizations sued Yahoo in San Francisco on behalf of Shi Tao and Wang Xiaoning. A U.S. congressional panel criticized Yahoo in November 2007 for providing incomplete testimony, characterizing the company as "at best inexcusably negligent" and at worst "deceptive."

Yahoo also shuttered multiple user-generated platforms. In June 2005, user-created chatrooms were closed due to child safety concerns and insufficient ad revenue. Yahoo News message boards were closed in December 2006 due to trolling. In October 2008, Yahoo deleted millions of user profiles without notice or explanation. The company acquired GeoCities in 1999 when it was among the web's most-visited sites, but closed it in 2009 after a decade of losses, deleting millions of user web pages. Critics described the closure as a missed opportunity.

References

Also noting that I've confirmed that this wouldn't leave any orphaned ref names in the article. Let me know what you think – happy to adjust. Mary Gaulke (talk) 15:40, 18 September 2026 (UTC)

I made a small organizational adjustment. I have not read Criticism of Yahoo so I can't say this covers all the highlights, but it does appear that what's covered has good WP:NPOV. ~Kvng (talk) 16:55, 18 September 2026 (UTC)

One comment I'd make is that the Geocities piece feels more like simple investor criticism regarding a business decision, rather than the unlawful or unethical acts cited in the balance of the "criticism." JerryGraf (talk) 16:39, 19 September 2026 (UTC)

@JerryGraf, so same for deleting profiles? ~Kvng (talk) 16:50, 19 September 2026 (UTC)

@Kvng My apology. My first read was myopic. I think this all works. I would just consider some mild changes. My draft below removes the Geocities acquisition story, which is what caused my misinterpretation, and also reestablishes the criticism premise in the first sentence.

"Yahoo also faced criticism for the shuttering of multiple user-generated platforms. In June 2005, Yahoo’s user-created chatrooms were closed due to child safety concerns and insufficient ad revenue. Yahoo News message boards were closed in December 2006 due to trolling. In October 2008, Yahoo deleted millions of user profiles without notice or explanation. In 2009, Yahoo closed GeoCities when it was among the web's most-visited sites,  deleting millions of user web pages." JerryGraf (talk) 20:54, 19 September 2026 (UTC)

@JerryGraf, that sounds reasonable. Would you mind making your proposed changes to MaryGaulke's version above so that we can directly diff and so citations and wikilinks are retained? ~Kvng (talk) 22:02, 19 September 2026 (UTC)

See below:

Yahoo also faced criticism for the shuttering of multiple user-generated platforms. In June 2005, Yahoo’s user-created chatrooms were closed due to child safety concerns and insufficient ad revenue. Yahoo News message boards were closed in December 2006 due to trolling. In October 2008, Yahoo deleted millions of user profiles without notice or explanation. In 2009, Yahoo closed GeoCities when it was among the web's most-visited sites, deleting millions of user web pages. JerryGraf (talk) 17:44, 20 September 2026 (UTC) JerryGraf (talk) 17:44, 20 September 2026 (UTC)

Thanks, both, for your help on this! I've posted a request below proposing summaries for the remaining duplicate content (mostly in the History section) if you're up for taking a look. Mary Gaulke (talk) 20:09, 6 October 2026 (UTC)

"Y!" listed at Redirects for discussion

The redirect Y! has been listed at redirects for discussion to determine whether its use and function meets the redirect guidelines. Readers of this page are welcome to comment on this redirect at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2026 September 19 § Y! until a consensus is reached. A1Cafel (talk) 02:59, 19 September 2026 (UTC)

"Y !" listed at Redirects for discussion

The redirect Y ! has been listed at redirects for discussion to determine whether its use and function meets the redirect guidelines. Readers of this page are welcome to comment on this redirect at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2026 September 19 § Y ! until a consensus is reached. A1Cafel (talk) 02:59, 19 September 2026 (UTC)

COI edit request: Summarizing remaining duplicate content from Criticism of Yahoo

Hi! As noted above, I'm a COI editor for Yahoo through my employer, Porter Novelli. Thanks for all the help so far in summarizing the information in this article that was copied over from Criticism of Yahoo. Per previous discussions, the requests below summarize the remaining information in this article that is currently duplicated or lightly paraphrased from Criticism of Yahoo.

• In "Strategic errors and security breaches", update

In March 2004, the company launched a paid inclusion program that guaranteed commercial websites listings on the Yahoo! search engine in exchange for payment. While initially lucrative, the scheme proved highly unpopular with marketers who resisted the fees, and the public, who disliked that paid listings were indistinguishable from organic search results.

to

In 2004, Yahoo launched a paid inclusion program to guarantee listings (but not rankings) on its search engine. The initiative proved unpopular with marketers, who resisted the costs.

The cited article doesn't verify the information about "the public". (The only related comment I noted: She said Yahoo saw no evidence of a consumer rebellion against paid inclusion. "We haven't heard from consumers that paid inclusion is something that they are upset about or complaining about. It's really been much more in the media space where the concern has arisen.")

• Also in "Strategic errors and security breaches", update

in January 2014, a large-scale malware attack dating back to December 30, 2013, was discovered by Fox IT in the Netherlands. Targeting Java, the attack delivered malware to 300,000 Yahoo! users per hour before it was stopped, heavily affecting users in Romania, France, and the UK. Yahoo! faced heavy criticism for failing to provide public guidance on the number of affected users or advice on remediation.

to

From December 30, 2013, to January 3, 2014, Yahoo experienced a large-scale malware attack that affected hundreds of thousands of users, particularly in Romania, France, and the UK. The company was criticized for failing to disclose the number of affected users or provide advice on remediation.

• In "Controversies under Mayer's leadership", update

Product overhauls also alienated users; when Flickr unveiled a redesigned layout in May 2013—featuring one terabyte of free storage and a dynamically re-sized photo grid—Tech Radar noted it represented a "sea change" in the site's purpose, but the help forum was flooded with thousands of negative comments from critics who felt Yahoo had lost its mind.

to

A product overhaul also alienated users when Flickr unveiled a redesigned layout in May 2013, featuring one terabyte of free storage and a dynamically re-sized photo grid. Tech Radar noted it represented a "sea change" in the site's purpose, but criticized the new pricing structure's value for professional photographers.

The sources don't verify the "help forum flooded with thousands of comments" detail, so I swapped in info from the source.

• Also in "Controversies under Mayer's leadership", update

Mayer's human resources policies and performance-rating systems drew severe legal challenges. In October 2016, Scott Ard, a prominent editorial director who had been fired in 2015, filed a lawsuit accusing Mayer of leading a sexist campaign to purge male employees. Ard, who had received "fully satisfactory" reviews since starting in 2011, alleged that Mayer encouraged the use of an employee performance-rating system to accommodate management's subjective biases against men. He claimed his role was eliminated as a pretext and given to a woman recently hired by editor-in-chief Megan Lieberman. As the lawsuit noted, Lieberman stated she was terminating Ard because she had not received a requested breakdown of his duties, despite him having already provided that exact information. A second sexual discrimination lawsuit was filed separately by Gregory Anderson, who had been fired in 2014, echoing claims that the performance management system was arbitrary and unfair. A California magistrate dismissed all the plaintiffs' claims except one: that Ard was passed over for promotion to editor-in-chief in favour of a woman prior to his dismissal. The judge found that "Anderson has not provided any evidence that his termination had anything to do with his gender".

to

In 2016, two gender discrimination lawsuits challenged Yahoo's performance-rating system. Employees Scott Ard and Gregory Anderson alleged the company discriminated against men in hiring and promotion and the performance evaluation system was systematically unfair. A California court dismissed most claims but allowed one claim to proceed regarding a woman receiving a promotion instead of Ard, while finding insufficient evidence of gender bias in Anderson's termination.

• In "Data breaches", update

The company reported two major data breaches of user account data to hackers during the second half of 2016. The first announced breach, reported in September 2016, had occurred sometime in late 2014, and affected over 500 million Yahoo! user accounts. A separate data breach, occurring earlier around August 2013, was reported in December 2016, and affected over 1 billion user accounts. Both breaches are considered the largest discovered in the history of the Internet. Specific details of material taken include names, email addresses, telephone numbers, encrypted or unencrypted security questions and answers, dates of birth, and encrypted passwords. Further, Yahoo! reported that the late 2014 breach likely used manufactured web cookies to falsify login credentials, allowing hackers to gain access to any account without a password.

to

In 2016, Yahoo disclosed two major data breaches affecting over 1.5 billion accounts combined, among the largest breaches in internet history. One, announced in September 2016, had occurred in late 2014 and compromised over 500 million accounts. The breach involved forged web cookies that allowed attackers to bypass password authentication. A second breach from August 2013 affected over 1 billion accounts and was reported in December 2016. Both breaches exposed personal information including names, email addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and encrypted passwords.

This eliminates the ref names "BBC_23_Sept_2016", "wash1" and "wired dec2016", but I confirmed they don't appear elsewhere in the article.

Sources

@JerryGraf and Kvng: Giving you a ping since you participated in the previous RfC, if you're up for taking a look. I really appreciate your time! Mary Gaulke (talk) 22:02, 4 October 2026 (UTC)