Wikimedia Commons Admin Logs Scraper

Wikimedia Commons Admin Logs Scraper

Scrape Wikimedia Commons admin logs by deletion, block, or user rights action, up to a million events per run. Each row returns the admin username, target page or user, timestamp, and log comment. No login, no API key, no rate-limit headaches. Export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML.

Wikimedia Commons admin logs record every deletion, block, and user rights change made by administrators, but the raw API returns paginated JSON that is tedious to page through and clean. This Actor queries the public logevents endpoint directly, flattens each event into one row, and stops when you have the number of records you asked for. It is the fastest way to get a clean dataset of Commons moderation activity without writing your own API client.

Who uses it	What they scrape Wikimedia Commons for
Wikimedia researchers	Studying deletion patterns and admin workload on Commons over time
Community moderators	Auditing blocks and user rights changes for transparency reports
Open knowledge analysts	Tracking which files and pages get deleted and why
Data journalists	Building timelines of admin actions around controversial content
GLAM institutions	Monitoring deletion logs for their contributed media collections

What it does

This Actor collects Wikimedia Commons admin log events by log type and returns each event as one flat row with the admin username, action, target, timestamp, and comment.

• 🗑️ Deletion log: every file and page removal, with the deleting admin and the stated reason.
• 🚫 Block log: every account or IP block, unblock, and reblock, with duration and comment.
• 👤 User rights log: every grant or removal of admin, bureaucrat, or other rights.
• 📦 Flat rows: one event per row, no nested JSON, ready for spreadsheets and databases.
• 🔁 Pagination handled: the Actor follows the API continuation token until maxItems is reached.

Results export to CSV, JSON, Excel, or XML, or straight from the API.

What you can do with Wikimedia Commons data

📉 Track deletion trends.

A Wikimedia researcher runs the deletion log weekly and charts which file types and uploaders get removed most often.

🔍 Audit admin accountability.

A community moderator pulls the block log for a month and cross-references each block with its stated reason.

🗂️ Monitor GLAM collections.

A museum checks the deletion log for their contributed images and flags removals for follow-up.

📰 Build moderation timelines.

A data journalist collects user rights changes around a controversial event and reconstructs who had which permissions when.

🧪 Study admin workload.

A researcher compares deletion and block volumes across years to measure moderator burnout and activity cycles.

Why choose this scraper

	What you get
No API key	The Commons logevents endpoint is public, so you can start a run immediately
Clean flat schema	Every event is one row with admin, action, target, timestamp, and comment
Three log types	Deletion, block, and user rights logs in one Actor
Pagination built in	You set maxItems and the Actor handles continuation tokens
Export anywhere	CSV, JSON, Excel, and XML outputs fit any downstream workflow

What a Wikimedia Commons record looks like

Every record returns as one flat JSON row. Here is a real one from a run:

{
 "logid": 406717557,
 "title": "File:Foto de Teuzinho.h.jpg",
 "user": "Lymantria",
 "action": "delete",
 "type": "delete",
 "timestamp": "2026-09-04T05:33:36Z",
 "comment": "[[COM:WEBHOST|Personal file]] by non-contributors ([[COM:CSD#F10|F10]])",
 "ns": 6,
 "pageid": 0,
 "logpage": 198823543,
 "scrapedAt": "2026-09-04T05:33:41.597Z"
}

Every value above comes from a real run. A field a record does not have comes back as null.

Configure the run

Pick one log type, deletion, block, or user rights, and set the maximum number of events to return. The Actor pages through the API automatically and stops at your limit. The Input tab lists every parameter.

A first run with the defaults:

{
 "maxItems": 10,
 "logType": "delete"
}

A larger pull:

{
 "maxItems": 200,
 "logType": "delete"
}

Free users

Free-plan runs return up to 10 results as a preview. Upgrade your Apify plan to collect up to 1,000,000 results per run.

Run it

1. Create a free Apify account with $5 in credit.
2. Open the Wikimedia Commons Admin Logs Scraper.
3. Set your inputs and any filters, then click Start.
4. Export the results as CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML from the Dataset tab.

Run it programmatically through the Apify API (run-sync-get-dataset-items) or the ApifyClient for JavaScript and Python.

Use with AI agents (MCP)

Give an AI agent live access to Wikimedia Commons through the Model Context Protocol. Add the Actor to Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client:

$claude mcp add --transport http apify "https://mcp.apify.com?tools=parseforge/wikimedia-commons-admin-logs-scraper"

Then prompt it in plain language to run the scraper and read back the results.

Troubleshooting

Why am I getting no results?

Check that you selected a log type that has recent events. The deletion log is usually the busiest. Also confirm maxItems is at least 1.

Why did my run stop before reaching maxItems?

The API only returns events that exist. If Commons has fewer events of that type than your maxItems, the Actor returns everything available and stops.

Can I get more than 10 items on the free plan?

No. The free plan is limited to 10 items as a preview. Upgrade to a paid plan to set maxItems up to 1,000,000.

Why are some comments empty?

Some admin actions, especially older ones, have no comment attached. The comment field will be empty in those rows.

How do I get all three log types at once?

Run the Actor three times, once per log type, and merge the datasets. Each run returns one type by design.

FAQ

Question	Answer
Do I need a Wikimedia account or API key?	No. The logevents endpoint is public and requires no authentication. You can run the Actor immediately.
What log types can I scrape?	Deletion, block, and user rights logs. Each run picks one type, so run the Actor three times if you need all three.
What fields does each row contain?	Each row includes the log ID, namespace, target title, page ID, log type, action, admin username, timestamp, and comment.
How many events can I get in one run?	Free users get up to 10 items as a preview. Paid users can set maxItems up to 1,000,000.
Does the Actor handle pagination?	Yes. It follows the API continuation token automatically and stops when it reaches your maxItems limit.
Can I filter by admin username or date range?	Not in this version. The Actor filters by log type only. You can filter the exported dataset by username or timestamp afterward.
What export formats are supported?	CSV, JSON, Excel, and XML. Pick the format that fits your analysis tool.
Is this the same data as the Special:Log page on Commons?	Yes. The Actor reads the same underlying logevents data that powers Special:Log, but returns it as clean structured rows.
How fresh is the data?	The Actor queries the live API on each run, so you get the current state of the logs at run time.
Can I schedule this to run daily?	Yes. Use Apify schedules to run the Actor on a recurring basis and build a rolling archive of admin actions.

Related actors

Browse the full ParseForge collection for more scrapers.

🆘 Need help? Email parseforge@protonmail.com with your run ID, your input, and what you expected.

Pricing

This Actor uses pay-per-result pricing: $0.004 per result collected. You are billed only for the results you receive, so a run that returns nothing costs nothing.

⚠️ Disclaimer. This Actor is unofficial and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. It collects only publicly available data. You are responsible for using the collected data in compliance with the source's terms of service and applicable data-protection laws, including GDPR, CCPA, and PIPL. Do not use it to collect personal data unlawfully.