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http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/119854-Glenn-Beck-Claims-Murdered-EVE-Player-Was-CIA

I can't comment too much on this, again, mods would be on me like white on rice, however...

I highly doubt it's true (despite Smith basically being a spin doctor), but having seen and heard some of the things that goons have done in both the real world and 'in game' there is a certain logic to this, *if* you assume that goonswarms now infamous attempt to create basically a harassment flash mob to force someone to commit suicide is an extension of the old behavioral studies the CIA used to do. I do know that MMOs are used for intel gathering, they've been doing it in WoW for years (seriously!) but I have a hard time swallowing that the CIA is taking over EvE Online.

There would be more cocaine involved if they were.

wait, wut? (I seem to be using that often these days)

How the hell has the CIA been using WoW to collect data on people? And more importantly, why? What do they have to learn about inactive greasy obese teens that they don't already know?

 Kovnik Obama wrote:
wait, wut? (I seem to be using that often these days)

How the hell has the CIA been using WoW to collect data on people? And more importantly, why? What do they have to learn about inactive greasy obese teens that they don't already know?

Domestic terrorists play WoW too. Anders Brevics a pretty famous WoW player now. It's just another communication medium to monitor.

 Kovnik Obama wrote:
wait, wut? (I seem to be using that often these days)

How the hell has the CIA been using WoW to collect data on people? And more importantly, why? What do they have to learn about inactive greasy obese teens that they don't already know?

Because that's the US stereotype of MMO players, not the reality. A lot of gamers have jobs, and some of those jobs have access to information the CIA wants. And guild members are chatty with each other. Consider, for example, that most of Korea plays one MMO or another. EvE would be ideal for it as most of the world -China are all in one massive server.

Errrm, isn't it more likely that they simply target individuals of worth, then, while gathering information on the person, note that he is an avid MMO player, which is a great anonymous media which allows for great entrapment opportunities, then sets up a monitor on them?

I seriously doubt that they've extended Echelon to cover MMO's. Imagine how often trip words would come up on a average day in an MMO.

EVE takes a tremendous amount of investment to do anything much less become widely connected. Does being in the CIA really mean you are required to do that much gaming?

 Manchu wrote:
EVE takes a tremendous amount of investment to do anything much less become widely connected. Does being in the CIA really mean you are required to do that much gaming?

Great investment of taxpayers dollars too!

Kovnik Obama wrote:Errrm, isn't it more likely that they simply target individuals of worth, then, while gathering information on the person, note that he is an avid MMO player, which is a great anonymous media which allows for great entrapment opportunities, then sets up a monitor on them?

I seriously doubt that they've extended Echelon to cover MMO's. Imagine how often trip words would come up on a average day in an MMO.

You're looking at it the wrong way, as sigint. Unless you're running the server, it has to be humint, and I doubt the CIA will go into that.

Manchu wrote:EVE takes a tremendous amount of investment to do anything much less become widely connected.

Actually, you don't. I was casual as hell and managed to work my way into a mid tier alliance's high command before I got bored after 9 years. In eve you eventually get rich in spite of yourself, if you play long enough.

The Mittani barely plays, and still operates goonswarm.

 BaronIveagh wrote:

Manchu wrote:EVE takes a tremendous amount of investment to do anything much less become widely connected.

Actually, you don't. I was casual as hell and managed to work my way into a mid tier alliance's high command before I got bored after 9 years.

Sounds pretty casual.

 Manchu wrote:
Does being in the CIA really mean you are required to do that much gaming?

I don't work for the CIA, but I do two very similar jobs in analysis and I spend about 90 hours a week in front of computer as a result.

 BaronIveagh wrote:

The Mittani barely plays, and still operates goonswarm.

EVE is structured such that, especially late game, playing is actually bad; it makes you vulnerable. However, the degree of effort involved is still quite high.

 Kovnik Obama wrote:
Great investment of taxpayers dollars too!

Its actually quite cheap because people are paying the intelligence gatherer.

 dogma wrote:
I spend about 90 hours a week in front of computer as a result.

Gaming?

 Manchu wrote:
Sounds pretty casual.

9 years at maybe 4 hours a week (more earlier on, the first year or so I played 'seriously') You have to understand everything in eve takes place in real time. The only grind is money, and like all things, once you have money, you make money. Also paying attention to patch notes is key. One patch I made the in game currency equivalent of 75K real world US dollars on what amounted to a lucky guess (massive speculation on robotics paid off when they jumped almost 500% in price).

I don't even have to log in to make money and increase skills.

Some geeks in the EVe online community are overthinking this.

You know if he was on EVE and had time to type this in, he also had time to send an email to a special agency address where it would be picked up instantly.

The alternative is for the CIA to be monitoring all traffic on EVE. That would only make sense if he interspersed his conversation with wierd codewords that a computer would sift through. The email didnt seem to contain any from what we saw.

Again, better to just send an email to 'Aunty Marge' that has the same keywords. Drop a keyword in the right place, instant attention.

How do any of us know that Dakka isn't just a CIA trapsite?

rubiksnoob wrote:How do any of us know that Dakka isn't just a CIA trapsite?

On an unrelated topic, has anything been doing anything illegally lately? Let's share stories! Make sure to include your full name and your place of residence in your story! Also, make sure to elaborate on the laws you've broken!

 Orlanth wrote:
Some geeks in the EVe online community are overthinking this.

You know if he was on EVE and had time to type this in, he also had time to send an email to a special agency address where it would be picked up instantly.

The alternative is for the CIA to be monitoring all traffic on EVE. That would only make sense if he interspersed his conversation with wierd codewords that a computer would sift through. The email didnt seem to contain any from what we saw.

Again, better to just send an email to 'Aunty Marge' that has the same keywords. Drop a keyword in the right place, instant attention.

EvE Online is a game that will sharpen your paranoia, if nothing else. However, my understanding of it was that he was not logged into eve, but rather talking on a VOIP program with several members of goonswarm followed by a post to a public msg board.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 LoneLictor wrote:

On an unrelated topic, has anything been doing anything illegally lately? Let's share stories! Make sure to include your full name and your place of residence in your story! Also, make sure to elaborate on the laws you've broken!

Well I've personally committed the following acts contrary to international human rights laws:
*This Post Censored in the interests of National Security*

 Surtur wrote:

No, he's not, and by Grodd he should pay Washington DC a visit. There's a great deal of Judgment that needs to go on there.

 Manchu wrote:

 dogma wrote:
I spend about 90 hours a week in front of computer as a result.

Gaming?

Research and data analysis. We don't work with MMOs, but we do have a few people who dedicate their time to forum chatter (Not me, and not this forum, mostly Reddit.) so I wouldn't be surprised if an agency dedicated to intelligence gathering made use of a type of media (in game chatter) which many consider to be innocuous and happens to be accessible for little money. And definitely wouldn't be surprised if a covert agency used seemingly unassociated media for low sensitivity emergency communications. Though, if that is the case, it was probably one of many channels used.

 Orlanth wrote:

The alternative is for the CIA to be monitoring all traffic on EVE.

No, the alternative is for the CIA to be monitoring the activity of a particular player or, more properly, a particular forum poster. Which is far from unreasonable.

 Orlanth wrote:
That would only make sense if he interspersed his conversation with wierd codewords that a computer would sift through.

You don't need to use keywords to make something turn up in a search. Even Google prioritizes results by a metric more complex than keyword presence.

 BaronIveagh wrote:
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/119854-Glenn-Beck-Claims-Murdered-EVE-Player-Was-CIA

I can't comment too much on this, again, mods would be on me like white on rice, however...

I highly doubt it's true (despite Smith basically being a spin doctor), but having seen and heard some of the things that goons have done in both the real world and 'in game' there is a certain logic to this, *if* you assume that goonswarms now infamous attempt to create basically a harassment flash mob to force someone to commit suicide is an extension of the old behavioral studies the CIA used to do. I do know that MMOs are used for intel gathering, they've been doing it in WoW for years (seriously!) but I have a hard time swallowing that the CIA is taking over EvE Online.

There would be more cocaine involved if they were.

Go outside. Get some fresh air...

 CT GAMER wrote:


Go outside. Get some fresh air...

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2008/02/nations-spies-w/

A crappy MMO like Eve that plasters its ads all over the web is bound to attract attention. It wouldn't be too far off to assume that there's a few international intelligence agencies lurking around in game.

Might be a fun job though.

 Samus_aran115 wrote:
A crappy MMO like Eve that plasters its ads all over the web is bound to attract attention. It wouldn't be too far off to assume that there's a few international intelligence agencies lurking around in game.

Might be a fun job though.

Not really, if they're doing all the mining to cover goonswarms ship losses. I can only imagine the suicide rate after a while of that.

Though not as bad as the devs. 'We have to keep all types of ship viable at all levels of play and keep them balanced at the same time.'. I'm amazed Iceland does not hae a larger issue with drug addiction.

I dunno about the CIA doing mass Data collection, but I know the CDC and USAMRIID were able to use WOW data as part of a program researching viral epidemics thanks to some glitched programming on Blizzard's part and a buff. Cleared out whole servers.

I think I remember reading about intelligence services monitoring communications over MMOs; that some folks were using them as a cheap communications medium for discussing illegal activities.

 Mannahnin wrote:
I think I remember reading about intelligence services monitoring communications over MMOs; that some folks were using them as a cheap communications medium for discussing illegal activities.

A punch of people questing and talking on a vent-server in game? Not a bad cover for talking.

 d-usa wrote:

 Mannahnin wrote:
I think I remember reading about intelligence services monitoring communications over MMOs; that some folks were using them as a cheap communications medium for discussing illegal activities.

A punch of people questing and talking on a vent-server in game? Not a bad cover for talking.

Not to mention how easy it is to get trial accounts or seize control of other individuals' accounts.

well if the CIA is hiring gamers to play games, /picks up phone "hello Langley, are you hiring?"
that's kind of along the lines of the FBI agent who's job it was in like the 60s to read Playboy, sweet gig if you're into it. I mean come on getting paid to do something you do for fun, that's my idea of a dream job. (the gaming not the reading Playboy, just to clarify)

I'll admit it. You lost me at "Glenn Beck"

Yea he is a member of the fruit loop brigade if you ask me, but then again I do like to listen to crazies and laugh at how crazy they are.But that's just me.
EDIT: although I could see where if you want to speculate with no boundaries you could think the guy was CIA SOG (if they're still active) because SOG recruits from ex-SEALS AFAIK. honestly the guy was probably not CIA, and if his job was monitoring internet traffic he would be in a basement in Langley, not Bengazi.

EDIT AGAIN: Also the guy's final message was " gunfire" sounds fairly matter of fact to me. I would interpret it as "holy feck someone is shooting at me IRL" not very complex for a code.