U.S. says troops were targeted with location data, as senator warns ad industry is a ‘national security threat’

In Brief

The U.S. Department of Defense has confirmed that adversaries person targeted and surveilled serving subject unit connected the battlefield utilizing commercialized determination data, the latest objection of however accusation collected from phones and computers tin beryllium abused to way and people individuals. 

In a letter shared by Sen. Ron Wyden with TechCrunch, U.S. Central Command said it was alert of hostile actors utilizing purchased determination information to way U.S. servicemembers.

“USCENTCOM has received aggregate menace reports concerning adversary exploitation of commercialized determination information to people oregon surveil US unit successful theater,” the missive reads.

The missive did not supply examples oregon specifics, and a spokesperson for the Department of Defense did not instrumentality a petition for comment.

Reuters first reported the quality connected Thursday.

Location information is often collected from phones and computers done online advertising, which past gets bought by information brokers, who past merchantability the information connected the unfastened market. Governments and militaries, including the United States, person purchased this information successful the past without obtaining a warrant. In caller years, the FBI has warned consumers to usage advertisement blockers arsenic a mode to minimize the magnitude of information that apps, websites, and different bundle tin collect.

Wyden told Reuters that it was clip to “start treating the adtech manufacture arsenic a nationalist information threat.”

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