Pentagon Researchers Fear That World Of Warcraft May Be Used To Plot Terror Attacks

Wired:

The American military and intelligence communities are increasingly worried that would-be bin Ladens might gather in a virtual world, to plan a real-life attack. But the spies haven't given many details, about how it might be done. Now, a Pentagon researcher has laid out how such a terror plot might unfold. The planning ground is World of Warcraft. The main target of this possibly nuclear strike: the White House.

There's been no public proof to date of terrorists hatching plots in virtual worlds. But online spaces like World of Warcraft are making some spooks, generals and Congressmen extremely nervous. They imagine terrorists rehearsing attacks in these worlds, just like the U.S. military trains with commercial shoot-em-up games. They worry that the massively multiplayer games make it incredibly easy to gather plotters from around the world. But, mostly, virtual worlds are nerve-wracking to spies because they're so hard to monitor. The accounts are pseudonymous. The access is global. The jargon is thick. And most of the spy agencies' employees aren't exactly level-70 shamans.

In a presentation late last week at the Director of National Intelligence Open Source Conference in Washington, Dr. Dwight Toavs, a professor at the Pentagon-funded National Defense University, gave a bit of a primer on virtual worlds to an audience largely ignorant about what happens in these online spaces. Then he launched into a scenario, to demonstrate how a meatspace plot might be hidden by in-game chatter.

Read the whole story: Wired

Comments

[mabinog]

"Then he launched into a scenario, to demonstrate how a meatspace plot might be hidden by in-game chatter. "

ummm, instead of just buying a pay as you go cell phone or meeting in person, they will talk in WOW jargon to transmit instructions? Clever but why risk it?

[mabinog]

yeah, and do away with all those medical schools and teach medicine with "Operation".

"They imagine terrorists rehearsing attacks in these worlds, just like the U.S. military trains with commercial shoot-em-up games."

yeah an attack upon Stormwind with your 70th level mage and homeys - just like terrorist cell tactics and ops. (sarcasm)

[hypnus]

Wow! Was Monopoly used by the Bush Administration to destroy the U.S. economy. Maybe we can use Clue to find Bin Laden.

[vincefango]

You said it.....took the words right out of my mouth.

[KCFreedom]

Perhaps Dubya should play the game "Clue"