World of Spycraft: NSA and CIA Spied in Online Games
December 9th, 2013Via: ProPublica:
Not limiting their activities to the earthly realm, American and British spies have infiltrated the fantasy worlds of World of Warcraft and Second Life, conducting surveillance and scooping up data in the online games played by millions of people across the globe, according to newly disclosed classified documents.
Fearing that terrorist or criminal networks could use the games to communicate secretly, move money or plot attacks, the documents show, intelligence operatives have entered terrain populated by digital avatars that include elves, gnomes and supermodels.
The spies have created make-believe characters to snoop and to try to recruit informers, while also collecting data and contents of communications between players, according to the documents, disclosed by the former National Security Agency contractor Edward J. Snowden. Because militants often rely on features common to video games — fake identities, voice and text chats, a way to conduct financial transactions — American and British intelligence agencies worried that they might be operating there, according to the papers.
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But for all their enthusiasm — so many CIA, FBI and Pentagon spies were hunting around in Second Life, the document noted, that a “deconfliction” group was needed to avoid collisions — the intelligence agencies may have inflated the threat.
The documents do not cite any counterterrorism successes from the effort, and former American intelligence officials, current and former gaming company employees and outside experts said in interviews that they knew of little evidence that terrorist groups viewed the games as havens to communicate and plot operations.
Yea, LOL … What do bet the middle aged pot, bellied NSA, CIA, FBI, DoD spook employees (gamer newbies) used their DHS credit cards to buy their pre-made undercover digital characters and avatars?
For example:
http://accountgear.com/buy/World-of-Warcraft-US
or companies like …
http://www.gamewar.com/
“… supports the buying, trading, selling, and building for 40 massive multiplayer online role playing games. We have supplied tens of thousands of accounts including pre owned, high end fully secure WoW Accounts, max leveled with high end skilled FFXI Accounts, and tons more. ”
Can you imagine how funny their monthly expense statements would appear?