US Marine Corps grapples with Web 2.0 – bans use of Twitter, Facebook and MySpace

The US Marine Corps has banned use of Twitter, Facebook and
MySpace for its active soldiers – the result of the US’ deputy defence
secretary William Lynn’s vow to review military use of social networks.

The Marine’s said the ban is a measure of security rather
than a curbing on its soldiers freedom of communication.

In an unclassified memo, the Marine Corps said social
networks are a “proven haven for malicious actors and content” with a
high risk for information exposure. The ban is expected to last at least a
year.

Facebook and Twitter do often struggle with security issues,
phishing and viruses alike, so from a security standpoint the ban holds water.

But for the soldiers, it’s a damn shame, especially those
overseas who use the service to keep in touch with family members and friends.

The move follows a similar ban in 2007, when the US Army
blocked soldiers from blogging from the frontlines, in case any classified
information was revealed. Soldier/bloggers must now clear all entries and
emails with a superior officer.

It should be disclosed that the US Marine Corps has a
Facebook page of its own, used as a sort of online recruitment centre. Many
high ranking domestic officers are active Twitter users, including Admiral Mike
Mullen, who tweeted today: “Obviously we need to
find right balance between security and transparency. We are working on that.
But am I still going to tweet? You bet.”

The Pentagon in the US has also
banned its employees from using social media, but also launched TroopTube last
year, a military-approved version of YouTube.

I think Admiral Mullen hit the
nail on the head by saying the military needs to find the right balance, and
with social media and Web 2.0 culture, it’s a difficult task, when everything
aspires to be free and open.

Banning such innovation seems like
an archaic, knee-jerk response and I imagine in the not-to-distant future the
militaries of country like the US or UK would have more success embracing
social media, rather than a blanket ban.