Gamers targeted by US and British spy agencies

American and British intelligence has been spying on gamers across the world, media outlets have reported, saying that the world’s most powerful espionage agencies packed virtual universes with undercover agents and surreptitiously monitored online fantasy games such as World of Warcraft.

Stories carried by The New York Times, The Guardian, and the US investigative website Pro-Publica said US and British spies have for years trawled online games for terrorists or informants. The stories are based on documents leaked by former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden.

Virtual universes like “World of Warcraft” can be massively popular, drawing in millions of players who log months’ worth of real-world time competing with other players for online glory, virtual treasure, and magical loot.