Spies with surveillance agencies in the United States and United Kingdom may have spent time undercover as orcs and blood elves , infiltrating video games like `` World of Warcraft '' in a hunt for terrorists `` hiding in plain sight '' online . That 's the finding of the most recent round of documents released by National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden to British newspaper The Guardian . Agents from the CIA , FBI and Pentagon and England 's Government Communications Headquarters infiltrated WoW and virtual world `` Second Life , '' as well as collecting information on the Xbox Live gaming network , according to the documents . A 2008 NSA memo called online gaming a `` target-rich communications network '' where terrorists could communicate `` in plain sight . '' None of the newly leaked documents , published this time in conjunction with ProPublica and the New York Times , mentioned specific terrorist activity foiled via the projects . But apparently so many agents were engaged in playing video games for national security that a `` deconfliction '' group was created to make sure government agents were n't accidentally spying on each other . Unlike traditional console and desktop games in which players compete in a closed environment , massively multiplayer online games ( MMOs ) allow players from around the world to team up and play together , often in real time using in-game communication tools . `` World of Warcraft '' is the most popular online role-playing game ever . It peaked at about 12 million subscribers in 2010 and still has more than 7 million , according to Blizzard . It 's unclear whether the agencies had surveillance capabilities within the massively multi-player games that normal players would not . A spokesman for Blizzard Entertainment , which owns `` World of Warcraft , '' told The Guardian it is unaware of any surveillance having taken place . `` If it was , it would have been done without our knowledge or permission , '' the spokesman said . On Friday , Microsoft announced it was strengthening encryption across many of its services in an effort to push back against `` government snooping . '' And Monday , the company joined Google , Facebook , Yahoo , Apple , Twitter and LinkedIn issuing a public statement asking the world 's governments to rein in online surveillance . While acknowledging the scope and popularity of online gaming , some security experts were questioning Monday whether spying on digital playgrounds is either wise or effective . `` I think I 've heard it all now , '' wrote British security analyst Graham Cluely . `` Obviously online games which include chat or IM facilities do provide a method for people to communicate ... but how practical is it to have a team of spies sniffing around 'World of Warcraft ' to see what they might find ? '' he wrote . Opinion : Why we should watch out for the watchmen of government secrecy . `` Why are n't they also snooping -- maybe they are ! -- on the chess app I have on my smartphone ? Perhaps every time I mess up my Dutch Stonewall defence it 's not really an indication that I 'm a lousy chess student , but instead a coded message for my opponent to launch an attack on SCADA systems in the Netherlands ? '' Snowden , 30 , has admitted he was the source behind the leak of classified NSA documents , which revealed the existence of top-secret surveillance programs that collect records of domestic e-mails and telephone calls in the United States and monitor the cell phone and Internet activity of overseas residents . A former contractor with the agency , he is wanted in the United States on espionage charges . Microsoft fights back against NSA 'snooping '
Leaked documents show spy agencies pried into online video games . `` World of Warcraft '' and `` Second Life '' were among those targeted . Documents were leaked by former contractor Edward Snowden . Tech companies have called for tighter surveillance restraints .