Media News - Monday, March 01, 2010

US Military allows Twitter, other social media

The Pentagon announced on Friday it has authorized the use Twitter, Facebook and other so-called "Web 2.0" sites across the U.S. military, saying the benefits of social media outweighed security concerns. The decision, which comes at a time of growing concern over cyber-security, applies only to the military's non-classified network. But it could mean big changes for large portions of the armed forces, including the Marines, which had selectively banned social media on work computers. The Department of Defense also had bans in place since 2007 on accessing certain bandwidth-gobbling Web sites like YouTube on its network. Social media are increasingly important for the U.S. military. Admiral Mike Mullen, who as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the top U.S. military officer, has a Twitter feed with more than 16,000 followers. U.S. Southern Command offered operational updates via Twitter on relief activities in Haiti. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said that he wants to use social networking to help the Pentagon interact with U.S. military members, many of whom are in their early 20s. But opponents have cited the risks of information leaks, of opening gateways to hackers, along with a potential overload of precious bandwidth on the Defense Department's network. The new policy says commanders will still need to defend against cyber-attacks and block access to online pornography, gambling and sites promoting "hate-crime related activities." (Reuters)

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