NSA Video Games Paper - American Civil Liberties Union

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Games: A Look at Emerging Trends, Uses, Threats and Opportunities in Influence Activities • Many organizations currently use the virtual world of Second Life to conduct training workshops. A few organizations have used the virtual world to fundraise and build up groups with similar interests. • Popular examples of virtual worlds include Second Life, Cybertown, Habbo Hotel, There, and Virtua!Magic Kingdom. Exhibit 3-3: Users are able to socialize in the virtual space Second Life. 1 n" Virtual World Scenario This scenario is fictitious. A sophisticated terrorist network joins Second Life. On a password-protected island of the virtual community, they construct replicas of sites that they are interested in attacking, and carry out realistic, virtual dry runs of their attacks. • They consider expanding their network and developing an on-going virtual terrorist training camp, complete with lessons on the manufacture of bombs, the proper use of artillery, and basic lessons on the most effective places to shoot a person to mortally wound them. Because virtual worlds can serve as a platform for hard-to-trace communications and private, sometimes password-protected meetings when members are separated by distance, the terrorist network also utilizes the virtual space for cell management and meetings. • The meetings help ensure that members are accounted for on a regular basis while drawing little attention to the gathering or the members' association. • Virtual interaction helps team members become familiar and develop trust with their teammates long before they meet face-to-face. • Working together in games or virtual worlds build teams cohesion which translates into better synergies in real-world situations. FOUO -Not for Public Distribution Page 30
Games: A Look at Emerging Trends, Uses, Threats and Opportunities in Influence Activities Frequent interaction with his network helps the leader monitor the level of his team members' commitment to the cause and ensure that they do not waver from the group's tactical and strategic missions. This also helps the leader prevent members from "defecting" or otherwise becoming a threat to the cell. Some of the terrorist network members living in a remote location with Internet access raise funds via "gold farming," a virtual form of the "sweat shop." Their laborers play games to develop the best, strongest in-game characters which are then sold online for a profit at sites like E-bay.tt • Because of the games' entertainment value, terrorist network members encourage players to "work" for them or raise funds themselves by simply playing games and then selling items. Other network associates participate in traditional fundraising. Second L~fe allows players to contact the organizer of like-groups, perhaps "humanitarian" organizations that support particular causes, and send mass emails to encourage participation in special interest events. Donations are laundered to fund terror activities. • Terrorist groups are introduced to new sympathizers in this way. • Other associates hold invitation-only "town meetings" or "group meetings" to impress viewpoints upon potential recruits. Virtual Worlds and MMORPGs as a Film Set Machinima: From Game space to Video Gaming can serve as a platform for propaganda video production. For example, machinima is filmmaking within the real-time 3D virtual environment of a video game. All that is required is a game and a desktop computer. 1 xiv The combination of machinima software and a virtual world or video game such as Planet Battlefield, allows one to film their in-game activities as they play to develop a film which is easily distributed over the Internet. Terrorists could easily exploit this technology. Through the use of virtual characters and audio mash-ups a terrorist could anonymously create machinima films that included speeches, updates, and briefings. He could use the technology of virtual communities to create target sites to convey to cell members the next planned attack, use games to give a visual plan of how the attack should be carried out, and familiarize teammates with the terrain of the intended site with the technology of Second L~fe. Additionally, one could use machinima to create a likable, militant hero with whom their target audience could identify. tt Durin the month of' December, SAIC anal sts eriodicall checked e-Ba for characters and items for sale. It was common to see a high-level character with special skills in World ofWarcraft or Everquest on sale for approximately US$2,000 with only minutes left in the auctions. FOUO -Not for Public Distribution Page 31
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NSA Video Games Paper - American Civil Liberties Union

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