Fragging Terrorists Online

[Solitaire]

The Spies Of Warcraft

Be careful who you frag. Having eliminated all terrorism in the real world, the U.S. intelligence community is working to develop software that will detect violent extremists infiltrating World of Warcraft and other massive multiplayer games, according to a data-mining report from the Director of National Intelligence. The Reynard project will begin by profiling online gaming behavior, then potentially move on to its ultimate goal of "automatically detecting suspicious behavior and actions in the virtual world."

Warcraft Intelligence Report

 

[Gate2501]

Wow... What in the hell.

Our government simply does not deal well with the internet in general.

I am an avid online gamer and played World of Warcraft for years. How on earth do they think they are going to monitor what people are doing in MMORPG's, when the companies that create and manage these games cannot even BEGIN to stop gold selling / botting / powerlevel services?

 

[Gate2501]

Direct Quote from the report...

The cultural and behavioral norms of virtual worlds and gaming are generally unstudied. Therefore, Reynard will seek to identify the emerging social, behavioral and cultural norms in virtual worlds and gaming environments. The project would then apply the lessons learned to determine the feasibility of automatically detecting suspicious behavior and actions in the virtual world.

Sounds like project Reynard is about to learn a lot about NUBS, NINJA LOOTERS and PENIS.

 

[shadron]

...not to speak of raking in the cash. Some people's faith in data mining is touching.

 

[Legalduck]

From this article, it appears the concern is solely on "virtual" behaivor. The article doesn't seem to concern itself with actions in the real world. What exactly are they afraid of? Are they afraid that the Horde has a security breach? It would be one thing if they thought extremists were using WOW for recruiting or for passing information (which is actually a really neat idea for a spy novel- "Look for a Tauren Druid. he will wave twice and then sit. He will have your mission."). These have real world applications. That doesn't appear to be the case for this project. Also, how do you determine who is a "violent" extremist where the game has frequent missions such as "kill X number of y creature."

Great. Our government won't help in Darfur, but they're spending money to protect the kobolds of the Fargodeep Mine.

On a positive note, WOW did provide a benefit to the CDC. Several months ago there was a "disease" mission in WOW meant to challenge high level players. The "disease" spread beyond what the designers intended. The CDC found that the event served a good model for how a contagion can spread. I posted the article below. Very entertaining, especially how the virtual disease was spread by "the stupid factor." (ie players breaching quarintine.)

http://in.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idINIndia-29069220070820?pageNumber=1

 

[Darth Rotor]

Warcraft Intelligence Report

You are invited to consider the discussion here, regarding the intersection between video games and RL politics.

Not sure if you are aware, but about ten years ago there was a pair of guilds (Not sure if they were Ultima Guilds or not) who took ganking in virtual reality into a RL animosity. I think it was in Philadelphia, maybe Chicago, but it wasn't pretty.

Likewise, we now and again hera of an assault or murder related to things like Lineage in Korea.

The behavior transfer is out there. Some people can leave it on the PC screen, some people can't.

Is this where our tax dollars ought to be spent? Hard to say, given that Information Age warfare is still a puzzle for most people, inside and outside of DoD.

The way I look at it, even secret agents like to run Molten Core now and again.

DR

 

[Bikewer]

I believe I encountered terrorists playing "Insurgency" online last week. They were dressed in typical garb, carrying AK-47s and RPGs....Oh, wait, those actually WERE terrorists. Fortunately, it was only a game....

Wonder what they're doing about Second Life? Why, terrorists could set up entire little communities, and hang out in disco bars, and download sex animations....The mind boggles.

 

[dudalb]

Damn, I thought this thread was about the latest edition of the "Rainbow 6" video games.....

 

[Cuddles]

There are two problems here. The obvious one has already been mentioned - most games are violent by nature. Not only do they mainly involve killing things, they usually have a big focus on killing other players. In some games, like the upcoming Age of Conan, killing other people is the whole point, with the virtual monsters there mainly as a sideshow. How can you spot dangerous people when every single person is doing their best to kill everyone else? How can you even spot anything suspicious, when any tactic that allows you to do better is fair game? Hiding in a low level area and preying on people who can't fight back might be the actions of potential murderer, but they're far more likely to just be someone who wanted the chance for a few easy kills.

The other problem is that all these games are fantasy. The whole point is that you can do things that you can't, or wouldn't, do in the real world. I've never been in a fight in my life, but I love running around hitting other people with pointy sticks. I'm firmly in the anti-gun lobby, but I love lying on top of a tall building picking people off with a sniper rifle. Trying to profile people's behaviour in real life based on their behaviour in an environment that not only allows violence but actually forces it to be used is just a very strange idea.

 

[ImaginalDisc]

Forgice me for being extremely slow, but a few questions spring to mind, beyond the obvious - like, "WTF, don't they have anything better to do?" And, "No seriously, WTF?"

As a World of Warcraft server is the private property of the Blizzard company and it its parent company Activision, and there's a pretty lengthy EULA, what laws could users possibly be breaking? Child pornography laws?

You can't transfer images across WoW and there aren't any kiddie avatars available so it doesn't even have the problems of Second Life, with its playground of user created content. What could a player in WoW possibly be doing that would concern anti-terrorism government agents, or law enforcement? I'm struggling, but without any real world plot going on, I can't think of anything anyone can do in Azeroth (or the Outlands) that could possibly break any laws. "Harassment" is covered by the EULA and Blizzard will simply boot anyone with a hate-speech avatar name or spouting bigotry.

 

[Darth Rotor]

I'm struggling, but without any real world plot going on, I can't think of anything anyone can do in Azeroth (or the Outlands) that could possibly break any laws.

Maybe setting up a plot using in game chat?

Yes, I know, there are server logs, but not all revolutionaries and anarchists are brilliant. Some are "gang that couldn't shoot straight" sorts.

Also, and I have no clue how the Feds would be able to figure this out, using in game chat and pre arranged code words (the actual target being referred to as Van Cleef or Onoxia) one could talk around a plan within the blizzard (pun intended) of online chatter going on in game, thus evading use of cell phones, and wire taps, FISA warrants, email, and so on.

Yes, it's a reach, but maybe that is an angle the Feds are taking: people who are hiding in plain sight.

Which means the Feds discussing this in public is a freaking OPSEC violation. If they know where you are looking, they hide somewhere else.

*slams head on the desk*

DR

 

[Cuddles]

Which means the Feds discussing this in public is a freaking OPSEC violation. If they know where you are looking, they hide somewhere else.

Maybe that's just what they want us to think. By announcing that they'll be monitoring World of Warcraft, they let the terrorists think they're barking up the wrong tree, all the while actually monitoring the real terrorist channels without anyone ever suspecting.

 

[ImaginalDisc]

Maybe setting up a plot using in game chat?

Yes, I know, there are server logs, but not all revolutionaries and anarchists are brilliant. Some are "gang that couldn't shoot straight" sorts.

Also, and I have no clue how the Feds would be able to figure this out, using in game chat and pre arranged code words (the actual target being referred to as Van Cleef or Onoxia) one could talk around a plan within the blizzard (pun intended) of online chatter going on in game, thus evading use of cell phones, and wire taps, FISA warrants, email, and so on.

Yes, it's a reach, but maybe that is an angle the Feds are taking: people who are hiding in plain sight.

Which means the Feds discussing this in public is a freaking OPSEC violation. If they know where you are looking, they hide somewhere else.

*slams head on the desk*

DR

Ahem.

I'm struggling, but without any real world plot going on, I can't think of anything anyone can do in Azeroth (or the Outlands) that could possibly break any laws.

 

[Gord_in_Toronto]

I see the NWO inflitrating the virtual worlds and taking over the servers by their superior programing skills. Then all virtual badguys will be virtually rounded up, virtually "waterboarded" to reveal their virual contacts and then be put in virtual dungeons to . . . well you get the idea.

 

[YoPopa]

What are the chances that this story is accurate? The fact that there may be some sort of intelligence program is easy to believe. That it's existence would "leak" is also believable. But really what are the chances that any news source has all the details in order?

If such a program does exist I would think that it's purpose was more along the lines of outside the box research. Hasn't the intelligence community recruited holly wood creative types in the past to do scenario brainstorming? I would take some comfort in the notion that the military might be willing to examine unconventional strategies. I say all this with the caveat that I was never very military or intelligent myself.