US military blocks advertising IDs to protect troop locations

The U.S. military has begun cutting off a digital trail that can reveal where its personnel are, disabling advertising identifiers on phones and computers used by some branches.

The Air Force told Senator Ron Wyden that it disabled the identifiers on computers and mobile phones two months ago. U.S. Special Operations Command said it had “recently” disabled them on Windows devices. The Army told Reuters that advertising IDs linked to mobile devices had been disabled since earlier this year.

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recently

The disclosures follow reports that data gathered by the advertising industry and sold by data brokers can be used to track and target military personnel deployed to war zones. Mobile advertising IDs are unique device identifiers that allow activity to be tracked across apps and can help pinpoint a user’s physical location.

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since before 2021

The Army said advertising IDs had been blocked on Windows computers “since before 2021.” On Android and Apple mobile devices, however, the feature had been disabled by default only “since at least February 2026.” Similar letters from the Army and Navy did not specify when all restrictions were imposed.

The issue comes as officials consider broader limits on phone use by deployed personnel. Reuters reported in July that some U.S. troops in the Middle East could be ordered to surrender their phones over concerns that videos posted online were helping Iran target American bases.

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since at least February 2026

Wyden and Representative Pat Harrigan asked the Pentagon to investigate whether the military had adequately addressed the risks created by the location-data trade. Wyden said the military’s efforts “have not been effective at neutralizing this threat.” Harrigan said U.S. enemies should not be able to buy information that helps track American troops. The Pentagon said it would respond to the lawmakers directly.

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have not been effective at neutralizing this threat