I wonder if anyone ever ran into a government hoax, when a totally virtual persona gets published as a suspect of crime (attempted murder, in that case). Namely, has anyone heard of a government official ARG ? and what could be the goals ?
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 11:32 am
by elfismiles
hava1 wrote:I wonder if anyone ever ran into a government hoax, when a totally virtual persona gets published as a suspect of crime (attempted murder, in that case). Namely, has anyone heard of a government official ARG ? and what could be the goals ?
Hava, I don't know of a specific example that meets the specifics of your question but the simple answer is YES, as training for police work, detective work, and espionage:
Music by TJ Pawlikowski, some camera work by me, Troy Herring and Rebecca Popka. This is the trailer for the Instructional Alternate Reality Game we are producing. For more information please see the website http://www.neverrestgame.com
Tags: Game Exceptional software media edge tim brosius espionage spy trailer iarg
That's the only "official" ARG-as-Intel-Training example I've ever really come across. Of course, there is always the possibility it wasn't what it seemed either.
Some other more generalized articles on the subject...
elfis wrote: ARG or NOT: "Introductions - My Interest in Collective Intelligence and ARGs for Espionage"
I think this and many other models for the use / misuse of ARGs and gaming for Intel Operations is evident in geo-caching games and ARGs / LARPs like NeuroCam:
Of course, now with the TwitterBot and other Automata / Persona software this can be done even more easily I suppose.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 11:59 am
by hava1
THanks. I see its a hot subject,maybe i didnt "get it" when the ARG mania rampaged here. What i mean, is could the gov be "making up" news stories, and I am refering to a particular case here that was published in crimnal section, about an attempted murder, but the victim's identity was never disclosed. Later, the case was supposedly "cracked", but I had a feeling that the suspect they came up with, is not a real person, but a fictitious identity. Later, when I raised my thoughts, a rather solid blogger/journo, suddently commented in my blog, that she coincidentally attended the arrest hearing in court, and gave a "real life" description of the suspects, which made it weirder, coz her account had an aroma of an ARGish account. Etc etc.
Either I am wrong, OR that this could either be training, OR a psych war game, because the MSM sort of gave hints that the victim is related to the intel community. So, this could be a way to absorb internet sniffers, and sort them out.
Not sure. Anyway, I meant that would it possible to make up a whole story like that, without anyone ever realizing that its not real. Just my hunch, I was kind of dragged into it, coz someone , a blogger whom I dont know personally, planted some cues in an email to me, that "kicked in" when the news was released. But he definitely is intel, so he could be a part of the hoax, and I was just a "carrier", given my blogging etc.
Not sure I want to go further into that. But apparently there are some activities on the net, that are better side stepped.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 12:40 pm
by Nordic
this may be o.t. but i have a strong suspicion bradley manning is not a real person.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 4:49 pm
by yathrib
Me too! But I don't have anything to back it up. Look at how people react if you suggest that Usama bin Laden is largely a figure of spin and myth, and IMO that's almost indisputable.
Nordic wrote:this may be o.t. but i have a strong suspicion bradley manning is not a real person.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 4:56 pm
by Luther Blissett
Nordic wrote:this may be o.t. but i have a strong suspicion bradley manning is not a real person.
I hadn't considered this. Very interesting.
What ways do we have of getting in touch with those who have purportedly served with him?
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 5:10 pm
by Nordic
I dunno. But Dennis Kucinich wasn't able to lay eyes on him, and neither was the rep from the U.N.
I saw an interview with his "father" and my instincts were telling me "this guy is not his father".
It's a pure hunch.
Who has actually laid eyes on him since his creation, I mean arrest?
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 5:19 pm
by DrVolin
I suspect there are many. Whether or not there is a body in a cell somewhere, I strongly suspect Jose Padilla is not a real person.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 11:52 pm
by hava1
On topic, I would imagine its easier to create a false person in the USA given the size of country and population. Perhaps the drill is to find out whether googling is sufficient source to verify existence and affiliations, credibility and so forth.
I'd say that's an improvement from stealing real people's identity or real people for jobs (mk ultra type). Making up a whole fictitious person is more economical in terms of human cost. But can be deadly, of course, in other ways.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Tue Apr 19, 2011 12:04 am
by barracuda
Nordic wrote:Who has actually laid eyes on him since his creation, I mean arrest?
FWIW:
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Tue Apr 19, 2011 11:26 am
by Stephen Morgan
DrVolin wrote:I suspect there are many. Whether or not there is a body in a cell somewhere, I strongly suspect Jose Padilla is not a real person.
Not any more, anyway.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Tue Apr 19, 2011 1:08 pm
by hava1
The demon of synchronicity brought into my DVD the movie "unknown" with Liam Neson, which deals with fake identities as well, and kind of triggers the MK DID thing . Will not spoil, but recommended for people who have been identifying with their "shell" story, and more.
Will be happy to hear from someone who watched it.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Tue Apr 19, 2011 1:35 pm
by LilyPatToo
I saw "Unknown" several times--very entertaining movie--but afterward its relationship to me and to my own history remained uncertain/confused. Not sure if it was just that it aroused my fear of things that other selves might have done or if perhaps non-multiples were disturbed by it too. But I had no such confusion with Liam Neeson's other film "Taken" which is my all-time favorite "rescue porn" and which I've watched countless times
LilyPat
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2011 1:49 am
by Nordic
barracuda wrote:
Nordic wrote:Who has actually laid eyes on him since his creation, I mean arrest?
FWIW:
Weird. Just like the father interview. How many friends refer to their buddies by their first and last names. He keeps calling him "Bradley Manning", not "Brad" or "Bradley" which is now most real friends would refer to their friends.
And the guy seems plastic and rehearsed. And why was this civilian allowed onto a military base at all? And why was he supposedly allowed to visit Manning when no one else has been able to? What is their "friendship?" Basically who the fuck is this guy supposed to be and why are we supposed to take his word for it that he's a "friend" of Bradley Manning.
It stinks.
Re: virtual identities
Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2011 2:59 am
by compared2what?
They're one step ahead of you with their deviously pointless schemes, though. Because yesterday they announced that they're transferring "Bradley Manning" to Leavenworth, where he'll be in the general population.
Maybe they're laying down a trail for the operative who's going to appear as "Bradley Manning" in court in about six weeks? Glenn Greenwald seems to think not. But what do you think?
Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 7:05 am