Federal investigators and researchers at the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) are brushing up on gaming. A reportedly leaked briefing document shows the agency born out of 9/11 to combat global terrorism is taking a closer look at what “violent extremist US teens” are doing in online gaming platforms ranging from Fortnite to Battle.net.
Published by independent journalist Dan Boguslaw, the alleged NCTC document lists a bunch of different places people play games and each one’s functionality. The full list includes Battle.net, Discord, Fortnite, PlayStation Network, Roblox, Steam, Twitch, and Xbox Live. Discord, which the gunman who allegedly assassinated Charlie Kirk used to discuss the murder, is the only platform that’s listed as checking every functionality box: “text chat,” “voice chat,” “video chat,” “image sharing,” “friend lists,” and “discoverable communities.”
“Some violent extremist US teens probably play online games or use gaming-affiliated networks and applications (apps), and could use these apps to communicate with like-minded individuals, conduct plotting, or spread terrorist messaging, judging from a past report of extremist use of online gaming to enable terrorist activity,” the leaked memo reads.
Seems pretty clear the government is coming for Discord users pic.twitter.com/SFc4yApeAU
— Ken Klippenstein (NSPM-7 Compliant) (@kenklippenstein) October 1, 2025
You’ll note that the document isn’t concerned only with the plotting of potential terrorist activities but also “terrorist messaging,” whatever that is. Following the assassination of Charlie Kirk, gaming-affiliated platforms like Discord, Twitch, and Steam have been called to testify before Congress. President Trump recently proclaimed Antifa a terrorist organization and the Heritage Foundation right-wing think tank called on the FBI to officially label “Transgender Ideology-Inspired Violent Extremism,” or “TIVE,” as a domestic terrorism threat category.
The reported NCTC memo is quick to point out in a footnote that “the mere presence of an individual on one or more online gaming platforms is not indicative of any nefarious activity,” and that “law enforcement action should not be taken solely on the basis of the exercise of constitutionally protected rights.” But it does say that communication on these platforms could be grounds for further investigation if authorities “observe suspicious behavior.”
There are a few notable absences on the sheet. YouTube is not mentioned at all, despite a wealth of gaming content and an algorithmic engine for pointing users toward it like a fire hose. Nintendo Switch Online is also missing despite the fact that the Switch 2 just rolled out video sharing and GameChat. I guess the country’s terrorism experts don’t think anyone is plotting political violence inside Mario Kart World.
