Pentagon reviewing policy after fitness app reveals sensitive info

The Defense Department is looking at its policy on wearable electronics to see if it needs to be updated after reports suggested that an app that maps users’ running routes could create a security risk for personnel on military bases.

Strava, a social network app for athletes, published in November a heat map that showed the running routes of tens of millions of people using the technology. Over the weekend, an Australian man pointed out that it was possible to use the map to identify individuals’ running routes around even remote or classified U.S. military bases, leading experts to suggest that soldiers’ lives could be at risk.

“We takes matters like these very seriously and are reviewing the situation to determine if any additional training or guidance is required, and if any additional policy must be developed to ensure the continued safety of DOD personnel at home and abroad,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning said Monday.

{mosads}Manning said military personnel are advised to put strict privacy settings on their wireless technologies and applications, and some technologies are forbidden at specific Defense Department sites and during specific activities.

He also said the Pentagon learned of the issue over the weekend and is not aware of any security compromised by the heat map.

Yearly training for all department personnel already recommends limiting social media accounts on the internet. 

The heat map and other recent data releases “emphasize the need for situational awareness when members of the military share personal information,” Manning said.