US says troops were targeted with location data, as senator warns ad industry is a ‘national security threat’

USCENTCOM has confirmed multiple reports that hostile actors have purchased commercial location data—collected via phones and online advertising and sold by data brokers—to surveil and target U.S. servicemembers in theater. The letter acknowledges the threat but gives no specific examples or technical indicators; the case illustrates how adtech and commercially traded location data can be abused for targeting military personnel.