Community rules & moderation

What you may contribute

Upload photographs and scans you are entitled to share. Give accurate credit, sources and the basis for any public-domain or open-licence claim. Owning a physical photograph does not necessarily mean owning its copyright. AI-generated photographs are not accepted.

Explain proposed identifications and include supporting evidence. Different suggestions may coexist. Moderator approval does not establish an identity as a proven fact. Do not merge people solely because they share a name.

People’s privacy

Living and unknown-status person records are restricted. An old birth year alone does not establish death. A person may be marked deceased without a known death date.

Do not publish private contact details, intimate information or sensitive claims without an appropriate basis. Age, copyright status or educational value does not automatically remove privacy or personality rights. Use Privacy requests if you or someone you represent is affected.

Sensitive historical material

Historical photographs may depict war, persecution, military uniforms or extremist symbols. We assess the photograph together with its description, sources and presentation. Factual historical documentation may be accepted; extremist promotion, glorification of atrocities, hateful content and Holocaust denial are prohibited.

Otherwise lawful sensitive photographs may receive a warning and blurred preview. A warning does not make prohibited material acceptable. Pornography, sexual exploitation of children, non-consensual intimate imagery and extreme gore are not allowed.

Never attach, download or forward suspected child sexual abuse material to make a report. Provide the item’s link or identifier and an explanation.

Reporting and decisions

Anyone can report a concern or request removal, without an account. Identify the content precisely, explain the concern and give supporting references where safe. Formal illegal-content notices normally include a name, email address and good-faith statement. Reports concerning child sexual exploitation can be made without a name or email.

New images undergo publication review. Ordinary research edits can appear immediately with history; protected records require review. Moderators assess reports, may request information, restrict access, correct information, remove content or restrict accounts. Legal requirements and community rules are considered separately. Decisions are made by people; we do not use automated face identification or automatic legal decisions.

Reporters receive an acknowledgement and outcome when contact details are supplied. Affected contributors receive reasons for restrictions and review options. Private contact details are not published. Information may be disclosed where necessary to handle a case or comply with law.

Requesting another review

Use your private case page to add evidence and request reconsideration, or submit a new report quoting the reference. A person reviews the request; where practical, a different reviewer handles it. These options do not limit your right to contact a competent authority or seek judicial remedies.

Our contact form is the human contact point for users and authorities. We accept English and German. See our privacy notice for data handling and retention.