Fitness App Becomes Security Risk After Military Movement Discovered

Fitness App Becomes Security Risk After Military Movement Discovered

Strava fitness app included a heat map of movement in their newest application upgrade which could be used against military bases.

A fitness tracking app that maps people's exercise habits could pose security risks to users around the world, including our military.

The application, called Strava, introduces itself as the "social network for athletes" by allowing uses to share their running routes, released a newly upgraded global heatmap last November. According to CNN, experts and keen observers have recently realized its potential to reveal location patterns of security forces working out at military bases in remove locations.

A Twitter user Nathan Ruser shared two images of the heatmap to his account noting how "clearly identifiable and mappable" U.S. military bases were.

"If soldiers use the app like normal people do, by turning it on tracking when they go to do exercise, it could be especially dangerous. This particular track looks like it logs a regular jogging route. I shouldn't be able to establish any Pattern of life info from this far away," Ruser tweeted.

Strava says it has "tens of millions" of users and, according to the company, marked three trillion latitude/longitude points on the updated map. It tracks location data using GPS from FitBits, cellphones and other fitness tracking devices.

Terry Ray, CTO of Imperva, says the real question is why this breach matters: because this data was collected by IoT devices that were generally ignored by IT and organizations as a whole.

“It's important that organizations think outside the box on how technology and more importantly the data they collect can be used," Ray said. "Consider the case of private data in retail.  Payment card industry (PCI) standards say you must protect data in various ways, specifically credit card information.  It makes no provision for users names, addresses, phone numbers and other private data unrelated to PCI.  So organizations protect just credit data, because that’s what matters for regulation and is what’s perceived as important data.  Yet, names, addresses and phone numbers are actually more valuable to data thieves and often ignored by IT."

In response to inquiries about the Strava data, Pentagon spokeswoman Maj. Audricia Harris said "DoD takes matters like these very seriously and is 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."

About the Author

Sydny Shepard is the Executive Editor of Campus Security & Life Safety.

Featured

  • Mall of America Deploys AI-Powered Analytics to Enhance Parking Intelligence

    Mall of America®, the largest shopping and entertainment complex in North America, announced an expansion of its ongoing partnership with Axis Communications to deploy cutting-edge car-counting video analytics across more than a dozen locations. With this expansion, Mall of America (MOA) has boosted operational efficiency, improved safety and security, and enabled more informed decision-making around employee scheduling and streamlining transportation for large events. Read Now

  • Security Industry Association Launches New “askSIA” AI Tool

    The Security Industry Association (SIA) has unveiled a brand-new SIA member benefit – askSIA, a conversational AI agent designed to help users get the most out of their SIA membership, easily access SIA resources and find the latest information on SIA’s training and courses, reports and publications, events, certification offerings and more. SIA members can easily find askSIA by visiting the SIA homepage or looking for the askSIA icon in the top left of webpages. Read Now

    • Industry Events
  • Industry Embraces Mobile Access, Biometrics and AI

    A combination of evolving workplace dynamics, technology innovation and new user expectations is changing how people enter and interact with physical spaces. Access control is at the heart of these changes. Combined with biometrics and AI, mobile access control has become increasingly crucial for deploying entry solutions that are seamless, secure and adaptive to user needs. Read Now

  • Sustainable Video Solution Delivered for Landmark City of London Office Development

    An advanced, end-to-end video solution from IDIS, with a focus on reducing waste and costs, has helped a major office development in the City of London align its security with sustainability objectives. Read Now

  • DHS to End ‘Shoes-Off’ Travel Policy

    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced a new policy today which will allow passengers traveling through domestic airports to keep their shoes on while passing through security screening at TSA checkpoints. Read Now

New Products

  • Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems, an industry-leading manufacturer of pedestrian and vehicle secure entrance control access systems, is pleased to announce the release of its groundbreaking V07 software. The V07 software update is designed specifically to address cybersecurity concerns and will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of Automatic Systems applications. With the new V07 software, updates will be delivered by means of an encrypted file.

  • EasyGate SPT and SPD

    EasyGate SPT SPD

    Security solutions do not have to be ordinary, let alone unattractive. Having renewed their best-selling speed gates, Cominfo has once again demonstrated their Art of Security philosophy in practice — and confirmed their position as an industry-leading manufacturers of premium speed gates and turnstiles.

  • FEP GameChanger

    FEP GameChanger

    Paige Datacom Solutions Introduces Important and Innovative Cabling Products GameChanger Cable, a proven and patented solution that significantly exceeds the reach of traditional category cable will now have a FEP/FEP construction.