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Operations security goes digital
Posted 12/29/2010
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by Senior Airman William Banton
1st Special Operations Wing Public Affairs
12/29/2010 - HURLBURT FIELD, Fla. (AFNS) -- Click through any photo-sharing site and you will likely find at least one random shot of someone you know doing something highly inappropriate.
While these photos may be hilarious, could they have the potential to reveal intimate details of your life to the world?
Walk through a mall during a crowded shopping day and you will probably be bumped and brushed by at least a half-dozen people before your shopping experience is complete.
These brushes may seem harmless, but could there be malice in an innocent bump?
The creation of smart phones and contactless credit cards has allowed technology originally used for product tracking and electronic banking to become available to the average American consumer. But these technological advancements have the potential to make Airmen victims of identity theft.
New technology allows wireless communication between objects to be found everywhere from credit cards to passports, and has the potential to open Hurlburt Field Airmen up to information security nightmares.
Radio-frequency identification, or RFID, allows communication between an object and a terminal via electromagnetic waves; it's the technology that allows you to tap your credit card against a pad to pay instantly.
Armed with credit card readers and laptop computers, electronic pickpockets have the ability to walk past individuals and access these electromagnetic waves to steal credit card information without touching the cards.
"A lot of people think (operations security) is just military but it's also your personal information," said Tech. Sgt. Andrew Maresh, the 1st Special Operations Wing operations security manager. "If somebody is deployed, I don't think they would be able to focus on their job if their wife called them up because of identity theft."
Common Access Cards, which use technology similar to RFID, may also be vulnerable to wireless electronic theft, he said. The information contained in the contactless portion of the card contains your name, photo and federal smart card number. CACs do not provide social security numbers wirelessly.
"I don't think the potential is necessarily as bad as credit card theft," Sergeant Maresh said. "But I can see it becoming something bad; people should protect their personal information as well."
The same wireless vulnerabilities to credit cards can also affect smart phones, said Lt. Col. Daniel Murray, the 1st Special Operations Wing Information Operations director.
"Smart phones can be infiltrated with the same type of software," Colonel Murray said. "Instead of pulling a number off a credit card, the phone can be receiving malware to extract even more personal information, like where the person and their family live."
Another OPSEC concern Airmen should be aware of is geotagging, which is the process of adding geographical identification to photos and videos uploaded to the Internet. Photos taken on smart phones are automatically embedded with a 10-digit grid coordinate, your longitude, latitude and usually the time, unless the function is turned off.
In August, The New York Times reported that TV personality Adam Savage, of "MythBusters," posted a photo of his vehicle on his Twitter account. The photo, which was geotagged, included the comment "off to work," revealing to the world where he lived and what time he leaves for work.
"I guess it was a lack of concern because I'm not nearly famous enough to be stalked," Mr. Savage said, "and if I am, I want a raise."
Mr. Savage has since learned his lesson about online security, but many Airmen may already be compromising their personal safety at home and abroad.
"Folks need to go the extra mile to educate themselves on their technology and the inherent vulnerabilities in order to protect themselves," Colonel Murray said.
Military personnel squadrons are currently providing electromagnetic sleeves with the distribution of new CACs to help shield the contactless interface from unauthorized access. The sleeves, which are mandated by federal information processing standards, are being provided as an extra safety precaution.
For further information, contact your unit OPSEC representative. |
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