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US Army Files Found On Second-Hand MP3 Player

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the great-seller-+++ dept.

MichaelSmith writes "A New Zealand man who bought a second hand MP3 player from a store in the US found it loaded with the names and personal details of American soldiers, as well as a mission briefing and information about equipment. Chris Ogle says he will return the unit to the US Defense Department if asked, and that it never worked as a music player anyway. A slightly different version of the story is available from TVNZ."

5 of 184 comments (clear)

  1. And the previous owner was? by El+Torico · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The Army should ask for the return of the MP3 player (and pay for it), find out who put the files on it, and punish them. I don't expect that to happen.

    --
    In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is usually crucified.
    1. Re:And the previous owner was? by houghi · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Most likely they will try to punish the current owner.

      --
      Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
    2. Re:And the previous owner was? by Gandalf_Greyhame · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I am just trying to work this out. How is a New Zealand citizen able to commit treason against the US?

      treason: (noun) the crime of betraying one's country

      --
      I am not stubborn. I am right!
  2. Re:Not just the military by stiggle · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Except they would like you use the USB mouse, USB keyboard to actually do some work :-) Easier to just lock the PC itself inside a cabinet so the end user doesn't have access to the box itself, just the keyboard, mouse, monitor.

  3. Re:what are the exit policies of the army? by tlhIngan · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The Army doesn't used iPods to store data. Service members, however, have a habit of ignoring policies and using whatever storage mechanism is handy to transfer data between systems. I'm in the Navy, and I've seen similar behavior. Yes, there are policies against it on my side as well. Stuff still happens, and this is exactly why we have rules concerning storage devices.

    The problem is, if you ban storage devices, you're gonna have to provide an equally convenient way to move data around. Otherwise everyone's going to find their own method, which may be as simple as emailing it around.

    The issue is that rules are made, but the rulemakers don't realize the reason why people were doing what they were doing. Ban storage devices, and if someone still needs to get data from point A to point B, well, you've just got a bunch of people who are going to find a way to either circumvent the rule, or to find an alternative, which may not be as secure.

    Banning the devices without an equally convenient alternative will just result in people finding workarounds. Just don't be surprised what those workarounds are. Interfere with people Getting Stuff Done(tm) without educating them on How to Get Stuff Done without X...