While it’s true Foursquare has check-in points for camps in Afghanistan and Iraq, the U.S. Air Force is warning their troops that doing so could endanger Foursquare users and their fellow troops.
The U.S. Air Force released a statement on their website telling troops to avoid the use of Foursquare, Gowalla, Loopt, Facebook Places and other location based services.
The statement says:
“careless use of these services by airmen can have devastating operations security and privacy implications.”
The move shouldn’t come as a surprise, checking in could be the equivalent of painting a target on a soldiers back, allowing enemies to quickly and effectively ascertain their location. Air Force officials not only took to the internet to warn troops, they also contacted senior commanders so they could speak to their troops about the dangers involved with location based services.
While the rules appeared fairly non-formal, there may be actual guidelines in place against the use of LBS applications.
At this time their are no badges available to warzone troops.
