The FBI is taking a break from solving mysteries (The X-Files is a documentary, right?) and is weighing in to help game developers who are dealing with online harassment and abuse.
As detailed in a report on Polygon, the executive director of the International Game Developers Association, Kate Edwards, has been liaising with the FBI on the matter of the recent rise in online harassment..
The American law enforcement agency and the IGDA are working on a new resource that will help developers cope with any abuse they may be on the receiving end of.
"I had a meeting with the FBI in July regarding harassment," she said. "They noted a rise in activity. They themselves monitor this activity, but they're focused more on cybercrime issues like hacking and very malicious harassment."
Given recent events, such as the bomb threat that saw SOE boss John Smedley's flight grounded, the harassment suffered by developers has been in focus in recent weeks.
"If we see that an issue is getting worse or that there is a greater need then we will serve that purpose," Edwards continued. "Obviously, given the recent events, that may be the case. We are actually setting up an online resource on our IGDA site and we hope to have it up pretty soon."
FBI spokeswoman Emily Yeh added: "We wanted to let Ms. Edwards know the FBI's capability."
Online harassment is an ongoing issue that plagues the industry, and developers will no doubt be hoping that intervention from law enforcement will help improve the situation.