Well, this seemed kind of obvious: The Air Force issued a memo on an internal website telling soldiers not to tweet their locations, check in on foursquare or use Facebook places while in war zones. The notice states “careless use of these services by airmen can have devastating operations security and privacy implications,” AP reports. The US Army has also issued a similar warning.
(More on TIME.com: Why the Cuban Government Is Speaking Out Against “Call of Duty: Black Ops”)
Considering that people have been caught cheating through Facebook pictures or ill timed tweets, you would think that soldiers would think twice before they send they post that Twit pic or try to become the mayor of a top-secret location. But, in February 2009, Peter Hoekstra, the Republican representative from Michigan, tweeted about his congressional delegation trip to Iraq, causing the Pentagon to reevaluate their social networking policies according to Information Week. “Just landed in Baghdad. I believe it may be first time I’ve had bb service in Iraq. 11th trip here,” he tweeted, continuing to keep his constituents updated about where he went in Iraq. I’m just amazed that he was able to post: I can’t even check in in certain areas of Brooklyn.
More on TIME.com: