03/17/06

« Bandage Powder | Main | DropTeam Demo Available »

Virtual Spying

Surveillance appears to be as popular in virtual worlds as it is in the real one. In a post to Terra Nova, PARC computer scientist Eric Nickell discusses life as a "virtual intelligence analyst." Nickell works on PARC's PlayOn project, analyzing data gleaned from online multiplayer games like World of Warcraft. It's interesting work, but Nickell's implicit analogy between government surveillance and data mining done for quality of service, add-on coding, and research purposes is somewhat strained. Until subversives and insurgents start communicating through WoW — an unlikely scenario given what Blizzard could reveal about those connecting to its service — data monitoring in virtual worlds will have almost no impact on real life, at least in terms of politics. In fact, oppressive regimes are probably happy to have their citizens plugged into virtual worlds killing dragons rather than marching in the streets.

1 Comments
Edward Ott said:

WoW admins know everything that you do. pretty sure they can pull up all conversations as well.

salam

March 19, 2006 8:17 AM
Recent

Taaz. It's For Women.

Taaz.com is a fun, easy-to-use website that gives women the opportunity to "try on" the hottest makeup and hairstyle...»


U.S. v. Approximately 64,695 Pounds of Shark Fins

Yes, that's actually the name of a case filed by the U.S. government. Best of all, approximately 64,695 pounds of...»


The Monstrous Information Flow

We live in an age of forgetting. The monstrous information flow that washes over us on a hourly basis,...»


Hairspray Turns Habitat

Scientists in Japan have discovered a new species of bacteria that can live in hairspray, according to the results...»


Honeysuckle Rose

Andrea Claburn performs "Honeysuckle Rose" with Jason Martineau, Buca Necak, and Otto Huber, at San Francisco's Octavia Lounge, Saturday,...»


Rolex Lobbies for Inclusion on Terrorist Watch List

WASHINGTON (NOT) - With the U.S. government's terrorist watch list ballooning beyond 900,000 names, Rolex has ramped up its lobbying...»


Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 2008 Election Early

If you planned on following the Presidential Election in November, you might want to plug your ears. A big...»


After Death, An Upgrade

After complaining of shortness of breath, being ignored by a flight attendant, and dying, a passenger aboard an American Airlines...»


Zombies Get Faster

It wasn't long ago that the cinematic undead obeyed the first law of corpse locomotion: A zombie might bleed...»


Urban Camouflage

On a narrow Tokyo street, near a beef bowl restaurant and a pachinko parlor, Aya Tsukioka demonstrated new clothing...»


Menu

Search


About
Lot 49 is published by Thomas Claburn. Some of it is true.


reflecting fires cover


Categories
Disinformation
Features
Interviews
News
Old Posts
Reviews
Signs of the Apocalypse
Tangents


Archives


Favorites
PodSigns: Hearing Reloaded
Darth Cheney 1
Darth Cheney 2
Darth Cheney 3
Google's Evil Scale
The Search Engine Confessions of AOL User 23187425
Cover Sheets for Classified Information


Subscribe

Syndication Feed

[What's an RSS Feed?]

AddThis Feed Button