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Newspaper: Pentagon Bans Pokémon Go Due to Spying Concerns

posted on by Karen Ressler
Officials concerned about leaking GPS data, personal information

The Washington Times reported on Wednesday that the Pokémon Go smartphone game has been banned at The Pentagon, headquarters of the United States Department of Defense. On July 19, all officials and defense contractors received a memorandum warning against playing the game, as it might pose a security risk.

Pentagon security officials expressed concern that the game's use of the GPS satellite network could provide an outside party with pinpoint accuracy on the locations of rooms where secrets are stored. In addition, officials are concerned the game could provide personal information on Pentagon officials to outside parties attempting cyber attacks or spying recruitment.

The Pokémon Go developers have begun disabling the game in certain locations, such as the U.S. Holocaust Museum and the Hiroshima Peace Park, after receiving requests. Iran has banned the game due to security concerns. New York State has prohibited sex offenders from playing the game.

Source: The Washington Times (Bill Gertz)


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