Usefulness Is Dangerous
by Pixeleen Mistral on 08/03/07 at 9:54 pm
Blingsider, Tard*Star, New World Goats Notes are completely safe
by Bayesian TextBot
be very very afraid of games – and the Second Life Herald
Roderick Jones recently posted an article to Counterterrorism Blog entitled “MetaTerror: The Potential Use of MMORPGs by Terrorists“. The article is primarily about Second Life, and on the whole compliments Linden Lab on creating a versatile and useful space. Of course, usefulness might not be a good thing:
“While the makers of Second Life (Linden Labs) pursue an admirable utopian ideal these metaverse systems can potentially also be used by those seeking to pursue a radical agenda.”
Note: this presupposes that “radical” is a bad thing, but let’s set that aside and really get to the heart of what Jones is trying to say:
“Streaming video can be uploaded into Second Life and a scenario can easily be constructed whereby an experienced terrorist bomb-maker could demonstrate how to assemble bombs using his avatar to answer questions as he plays the video. Using the decentralized organization effect, already successfully used by SL companies, the bomb-maker and his pupils can be spread around the globe and using instant language translation tools (available in the world) could be speaking a variety of languages. “
Add to this the fact that “the terrorists” could run drills in custom built simulations and exchange money with each other, and we have a major threat to world security. In short: the tool works too well. Be afraid.
One has to ask: why would anybody want to promote fear and paranoia so arbitrarily? Don’t we already have terrorists for that? Why do we need to do a terrorist’s work for them by fear-mongering on the public? What would any of us gain by that?
Jones runs the private intelligence practice Concentric Solutions International. People pay his company to spy on others, keep others from spying on them, lock down security loopholes in computer networks, investigate employees, and provide executives with body guards. Of course, the very first thing they list in their services is this:
“Concentric is a leader in the monitoring of the new sources of information that have evolved with the development of Web 2.0 services and their focus on user-created content. With this in mind, Concentric monitors blogs, social networking sites and even MMORPGs (Massive Multi-Player Online Role Playing Games) in order to inform its intelligence program .”
If you’re not feeling paranoid yet, take a look at Jones’ other site MetaTerror which contains just two things: the essay mentioned above and a list of links. Among the links: Terra Nova, 3pointD, and Second Life Herald.
Smile and waive at Jones, everybody, he’s watching you right now. Hi Roderick!
It’s no wonder we haven’t had a terrorist attack in awhile. With the propagandists from security companies scaring the public into paying them, the terrorists can’t hope to compete for the existing fear-share.
C
Mar 8th, 2007
There’s these things called ‘letters’ that terrorists can use to communicate with other terrorists. In fact letters are composed of sheets of paper on which terrorists can write secret marks called “words” that can transmit thoughts on how to terrorize. These need to be banned immediately, as these sheets of paper can even be “bound” into “books” and transmit large amounts of terroristic terrorism. Terror terror terrorists. Scary boogedy terror! Vote Republican!
Nacon
Mar 9th, 2007
“It’s no wonder we haven’t had a terrorist attack in awhile.”
That’s because there’s an attack pattern going on… go see how long it took them to attack by each majority moment or weeks it goes on. There an large gap of time in between those major attack. That gap is around 2 or 1 months… look like we’re due for another one coming very very soon I guess? Maybe we’ll have Irish Holiday theme special attack.
(yes, evil flying clovers are coming at some point, or attacking rainbow particle popping up everywhere. It’s not hard to imagine all that.)
Nacon
Mar 9th, 2007
should I say… remember those green Christmas penis anyone?
Panda
Mar 9th, 2007
Newsflash: Terrorists use communication tools.
He’s just trying to drum up business. End of (non) story.
Eloise
Mar 9th, 2007
If terrorists want to distribute video of how to build bombs, why is SL a better choice than their own website, YouTube, or sending a DVD through their distribution network?
Given how critical I’ve been of US policy in speech in SL maybe I should be afraid though, since I’m obviously a dangerous radical, and a foreigner to boot! Or is pointing out that Bush is an idiot, that choosing to plough ahead with pouring extra money and troops into Iraq after the mid-term election results suggests he doesn’t care what his own populace think (very good in a so-called democracy) and his latest (only reported as his likely response, but all too plausible) stupidity of saying more or less “My mate can’t have broken the law so I’ll pardon him and ignore the judicial system too” simply exercising my right to freedom of speech? I still have it in the UK after all.
Ickabod Humphreys
Mar 9th, 2007
Well I’ll make it my duty if i see any sort of “terrorist like” activity going on in SL, I’ll be SURE to turn them in to Linden Labs. *scoffs*
that’s sarcasm by the way.
shockwave yareach
Mar 9th, 2007
Youtube can be used for the same thing. So could Yahoo, Google, email, the US postoffice, DVDs and Videotape, paper, photographic film, crayons…
Urizenus
Mar 9th, 2007
…drawing in the sand with sticks…
Natasha
Mar 9th, 2007
The author of this article in my opinion is a total moron. We have enough problems in SL as it is, without him barking up so more, especially those that are clearly have no valid claims. I mean how desperate do you have to get to write an article after the issue have already been addressed before, and put silly things like that in it .
“Streaming video can be uploaded into Second Life and a scenario can easily be constructed whereby an experienced terrorist bomb-maker could demonstrate how to assemble bombs using his avatar to answer questions as he plays the video. Using the decentralized organization effect, already successfully used by SL companies, the bomb-maker and his pupils can be spread around the globe and using instant language translation tools (available in the world) could be speaking a variety of languages. ”
I wish terrorists were that stupid…..
Viajero Pugilist
Mar 9th, 2007
Dude, I hear that that Alberto Gonzales and the Department of Justice have nominated Mr. Jones for a federal attorney position. He’s gonna replace some bleeding-heart, lily-livered, terrorist-coddling faggot who just doesn’t get the threat against the Homeland.
ronin kurosawa
Mar 9th, 2007
I have a real problem with this language from MetaTerror.com:
“This project seeks to examine the use of Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) by radical elements in society such as, terrorists and other real life activist or criminal groups”
So activists are now in the same league as terrorists and criminal groups?
I’ve heard rumors that some people are using Second Life for free speech and other subversive activities. Someone better call Fox news immediately.
Prokofy Neva
Mar 9th, 2007
The way to understand the usefulness of SL and other virtual worlds relative to combatting terrorism, or visa versa, their usefulness to terrorists, isn’t in imagining that they will necessarily plan RL terrorist acts in laggy, crashy, messed-up, badly performing SL, which feels like it’s under terrorist attack on a *good* day. Nowadays, you could throw a good couple-12 grid-crashes and self-replicating fish out on the grid and people wouldn’t even notice it because it already feels like it’s under attack most of the time.
No, that’s not the point. The point is to understand through the uses of virtuality’s acceleration, exaggeration, rapid connectinos, etc. how groups are formed; how conformity is enforced in them; what happens to them makes them split; how order is maintained and discipline used, etc. etc. Leninist groups like the Patriotic Nigras are case studies in terrorist groups, and the way in which the media and the general public deal with them or don’t deal with them. It’s very important to study it.
There’s this silly idea that people who grief or commit racist or other kinds of big attacks on the Internet don’t do this in RL. That’s bullshit. Those who are professionally involved in studying and combating cyber attacks can tell you of a steady percentage of people who form connections and then go and do the same thing in RL or use the Internet as a testing ground first, or who just happen to approach both virtuality and reality with the same set of criminal intentions. There’s a definite percentage of people who commit virtual hate attacks who will also cross into physical violence in RL too. So to dismiss the virtual as never affecting the real is naive and stupid; of course it affects it, even if the effect isn’t 100 percent.
ronin kurosawa
Mar 9th, 2007
So Prokofy, does the same hold true for activists (and other criminal groups)? In other words, do they use SL to plan their activism and then carry out activism in the real world? Imagine what that might be like?
Are you in law enforcement by day? Or do you just socialize with “those who are professionally involved in studying and combating cyber attacks”?
Roderick Jones
Mar 11th, 2007
Thanks for all comments. My motivation for writing the Metaterror piece and posting it, was to elicit comment from a wide variety of sources. This I think I have achieved!
One of the most interesting reposnses I received was from someone who simply identified themsleves as UJ. They outlined the scenario of an ‘open source’ war on terror. Where all sides have access to the same tools and individual citizens simply decide to organize and resist terror groups on an ad hoc basis. This sounded remarkably similar to the anti-fn protests in SL and would certainly reduce the Pentagon’s future budget projections!
Once again thanks for all comments – its been illuminating.
Counterterrorism Blog
Mar 12th, 2007
Part II of “MetaTerror: The Potential Use of MMORPGs by Terrorists”
On March 1, I posted “MetaTerror: The Potential Use of MMORPGs by Terrorists,” consisting of a guest post by Roderick Jones of Concentric Solutions Int’l, about the potential use of “Second Life” digital 3-D worlds by terrorists. I invited comments…
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