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What I've yet to see is anyone commenting on how secret these "secret" military bases really are. I have a feeling, based on the amount of attention this is get

What I've yet to see is anyone commenting on how secret these "secret" military bases really are. I have a feeling, based on the amount of attention this is getting in mainstream media, that the militaries involved aren't too concerned. Also, any nation state with access to satellite intel presumably already knows about all of these. So if "secret" means "not listed on Wikipedia", I'm afraid only more arguments in favor of surveillance will come of this.

bpchaps 9y ago
The problem doesn't begin, nor end at identifying military bases. There's a much a larger problem going on here where individuals' privacy is being waved around for what amounts to PR.
- TallGuyShort 9y ago
  By PR, are you referring to the media publicizing this for dramatic effect, or Strava implementing social features? There are lots of shady ways companies try to go viral, but given how much individuals clearly want to share this data, I'm not sure blaming Strava for facilitating that sharing is very fair or accurate.
  - bpchaps 9y ago
    I don't think they're publicizing this for dramatic effect - just that they are painfully careless with the data that they keep. Whether the tools are useful and whether people want to use them carelessly isn't the point. A bit (a lot) more discretion would be appreciated from Strava. As far as I'm concerned, this is an industry norm, so my problem isn't so much with Strava, but the dangerous cultures that surround massive data collection operations. Disclaimer: I work in adtech. Opinions are my own.
JumpCrisscross 9y ago
> any nation state with access to satellite intel presumably already knows about all of these Not every enemy is a nation state with satellite capabilities. And not every satellite system can so extensively map e.g. patrol routes. This is a glaring opsec failure by the U.S. military.
sand500 9y ago
It's not just governments and nation states that could use this data: https://www.military.com/defensetech/2012/03/15/insurgents-used-cell-phone-geotags-to-destroy-ah-64s-in-iraq https://www.military.com/defensetech/2012/03/15/insurgents-u...

bpchaps 9y ago

The problem doesn't begin, nor end at identifying military bases. There's a much a larger problem going on here where individuals' privacy is being waved around for what amounts to PR.

TallGuyShort 9y ago
By PR, are you referring to the media publicizing this for dramatic effect, or Strava implementing social features? There are lots of shady ways companies try to go viral, but given how much individuals clearly want to share this data, I'm not sure blaming Strava for facilitating that sharing is very fair or accurate.
- bpchaps 9y ago
  I don't think they're publicizing this for dramatic effect - just that they are painfully careless with the data that they keep. Whether the tools are useful and whether people want to use them carelessly isn't the point. A bit (a lot) more discretion would be appreciated from Strava. As far as I'm concerned, this is an industry norm, so my problem isn't so much with Strava, but the dangerous cultures that surround massive data collection operations. Disclaimer: I work in adtech. Opinions are my own.

JumpCrisscross 9y ago

> any nation state with access to satellite intel presumably already knows about all of these Not every enemy is a nation state with satellite capabilities. And not every satellite system can so extensively map e.g. patrol routes. This is a glaring opsec failure by the U.S. military.

sand500 9y ago

It's not just governments and nation states that could use this data: https://www.military.com/defensetech/2012/03/15/insurgents-used-cell-phone-geotags-to-destroy-ah-64s-in-iraq https://www.military.com/defensetech/2012/03/15/insurgents-u...