Sailor's Strava jog exposes French aircraft carrier's location
What's the story
A French Navy sailor has inadvertently revealed the location of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the Mediterranean Sea. The incident happened after he logged a workout on his public Strava profile, according to Le Monde. The young naval officer recorded a 36-minute run on March 13, placing the carrier near Cyprus and about 100km off Turkey's coast.
Data breach
Sailor used smartwatch to log run
The officer used a smartwatch to log a run of over four miles on the nearly 900-foot ship's deck. The recorded route effectively traced the ship's outline, revealing its location and movements. This incident comes amid heightened regional tensions after US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran, and an ongoing conflict for two weeks that has embroiled large parts of West Asia.
Previous breaches
At least 1 other profile was posting geotagged workouts
The report also noted that at least one other public profile had been posting geotagged workouts from another French Navy ship on an active mission. These posts included photos of the deck, crew members, and onboard exercise equipment. The incident has raised fresh concerns about location-sharing technology in sensitive environments.
Past incidents
Fitness platform allows people to log and share workouts online
Strava, which has around 120 million users worldwide, allows people to log and share their workouts online. The French Armed Forces General Staff confirmed that the sailor violated digital security rules by sharing his run, adding "appropriate measures will be taken by the command." According to Le Monde, French President Emmanuel Macron's security detail, along with those of US presidents and Russia's Vladimir Putin, used the app as recently as last year, inadvertently revealing their identities through its location-sharing feature.