Fitness app Strava gives the location of Biden, Trump and other leaders, writes a French newspaper

PARIS – An investigation by the French newspaper Le Monde found that the highly confidential movements of the US President Joe Bidenpresidential competitors Donald Trump And Kamala Harrisand other world leaders can be easily tracked online using a fitness app used by their bodyguards.

However, the US Secret Service told the newspaper that it does not believe the protection it provides was compromised in any way.

Le Monde discovered that some US Secret Service agents use the Strava fitness appincluding in recent weeks after two assassination attempts on Trumpin an investigative video released in French and English. Strava is a fitness tracking app primarily used by runners and cyclists to record their activity and share workouts with the community.

Le Monde also identified Strava users among members of the French Presidential Security Service. Emmanuel Macron and the President of Russia Vladimir Putin. In one example, Le Monde tracked the movements of Macron’s bodyguards via Strava to determine that the French leader spent a weekend in the Normandy seaside resort of Honfleur in 2021. The trip was supposed to be private and was not on the president’s official agenda.

Le Monde reported that the whereabouts of Melania Trump and Jill Biden can also be determined by tracking the Strava profiles of their bodyguards.

In a statement to Le Monde, the U.S. Secret Service said its employees are not permitted to use personal electronic devices on duty during protective assignments, but “we do not prohibit employees from personally using social media while off duty.”

“The affected personnel have been notified,” the statement said. “We will review this information to determine if any additional training or guidance is required.”

“We do not believe that there was any impact on protective operations or threats to any of the protected persons,” the department added. The location is “regularly revealed as part of a public schedule.”

In another example, Le Monde reported that the Strava profile of a US Secret Service agent listed the location of a hotel where Biden subsequently stayed in San Francisco for several days. high-stakes talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2023. A few hours before Biden arrived, the agent went for a run from the hotel using Strava, which tracked his route, the newspaper found.

The newspaper’s journalists report that they were able to identify 26 American agents, 12 members of the French GSPR, the Security Group of the President of the Republic, and six employees of the Russian FSO (Federal Security Service), all of whom are responsible for the president’s security. had public accounts on Strava and therefore reported their movements online, including during professional trips. Le Monde did not name the bodyguards for security reasons.

It said movements tracked using Strava could lead to security breaches, especially when security agents travel ahead of time to places such as hotels where leaders then stay and hold meetings.

Macron’s office said on Monday that the consequences of the problems reported by Le Monde “are very minor and do not in any way affect the security of the president of the republic.”

Local authorities are aware of Macron’s movements in advance, and Macron’s locations are always completely safe, “so there is no risk,” the statement said.

“However, the chief of staff sent a reminder to agents asking them not to use the app,” Macron’s office added.

Harris’ campaign deferred comment on the security issue to federal officials. In response to questions posed to the Trump campaign, a Republican National Committee spokesman repeated some of the criticisms of the Biden administration but made no mention of the vulnerability or how the campaign responded.

Security risks associated with fitness apps show the need for greater regulation of how tech companies can use consumer data, said Ibrahim Baggili, a computer scientist and professor of cybersecurity at Louisiana State University.

Baggili’s research showed how attackers can use data from fitness apps to track potential victims, creating the risk of stalking, robbery and other crimes.

Consumers often give app developers the right to use or sell their data when they agree to terms of service, Baggili said.

“Companies like our data and we like the product, so we give the data away for free,” he said. “The government really needs to start cracking down on how data can be used and how long it can be kept.”

Identifying the president’s bodyguards – some of them use their full names on Strava – could also help find other details about their personal addresses, their families, their movements and photos they posted on various social networks, all of which could possibly be used to put pressure on them for malicious purposes, the report emphasizes.

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AP reporter David Klepper contributed from Washington.