Space Force: Advanced Technology, Backwards on Privacy

United States military leadership has announced that they are moving away from annual physical fitness tests.  The most technology focused branch of the US military will roll out with a technological alternative to fitness testing: Wearable fitness trackers.  The wearable fitness trackers are expected to be in use by 2023 and are already being beta-tested.

Along with the trackers, Space Force Guardians will have access to a software solution that will be able to provide them with fitness and workout regimens and preventive health practices.  Military leadership will surely be thrilled to keep its Guardians at peak combat readiness.

What are the downsides though?

There have already been security concerns due to fitness tracker data being shared on social media and revealing the locations of military bases and patrol routes.

There are also concerns that the technology can be hacked.  Foreign actors could potentially gain valuable insights from successfully hacking the wearable fitness trackers of Space Force Guardians.

The Guardians themselves have a huge stake in this development as well.  They will be expected to provide information about their activity level to their employer, who already controls many facets of their lives.  Depending on how much detail is collected, the data collected by fitness trackers could be providing the overseers with sensitive personal information or very intrusive private information of the Guardians.

Guardians are also receiving extra responsibility with the change.  They need to be cognizant of how to keep their data safe and secure.  They will have to balance wearing the device frequently to record the necessary amount of activity and their privacy interests in having some time to themselves unobserved.

Furthermore, this type of data processing isn’t something that the data subjects (the Guardians) could interact with under laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).  As a government agency, Space Force Guardians aren’t obligated to comply with the CCPA.

There is, however, some room for optimism.  The company behind the technology, FitRankings, seems to value privacy.  In a nod to data minimization, the CEO, Patrick Hitchins said, “We are going to pull the minimum amount of data needed to accomplish the mission.”

Forward thinking about privacy can go a long way.  Clarip can help your company be a privacy leader.  We provide data privacy compliance solutions such as data subject request fulfillment, vendor management, consent management, and data mapping.  We also have tools that can help reduce the risk of leaking data to third parties with our Data Risk Intellligence Scan.  Call us at 1-888-252-5653 or visit our website at www.clarip.com to learn more.

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