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Air Force Disables Ad IDs to Block Location Tracking

9/7/2026

12 2 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

The U.S. military disabled advertising identifiers on computers and mobile devices to block location tracking.
The Air Force told Sen. Ron Wyden it disabled advertising IDs on computers and phones about two months ago.
The Army said Android and Apple devices have advertising IDs disabled by default since February 2026.
Sen. Ron Wyden and Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC) urged a Pentagon investigation, saying the measures have not neutralized the threat.

History

Historical Context

In June 2013 Edward Snowden leaked NSA’s PRISM program—launched in 2007 under the Protect America Act—showing that the agency harvested location data from about 1.5 million Verizon users. That revelation spurred the Pentagon, led by the Air Force and backed by Rep. Pat Harrigan, to disable advertising identifiers on Android and Apple devices, a step aimed at limiting similar mass-surveillance capabilities.

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Story summary

The U.S. military disabled advertising identifiers on computers and mobile devices to block location tracking.
The Air Force told Sen. Ron Wyden it disabled advertising IDs on computers and phones about two months ago.
The Army said Android and Apple devices have advertising IDs disabled by default since February 2026.
Sen. Ron Wyden and Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC) urged a Pentagon investigation, saying the measures have not neutralized the threat.

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