Social Networks - The guide of good American soldier on social networks

Do not say: "My soldier is X, Camp Y, Z of the city, Afghanistan." Instead say: "My soldier is deployed in Afghanistan." Here is one of the recommendations of the U.S. Army soldiers who use social networks on battlefields. This new edition of "Manual" from the U.S. Army, Release Thursday, January 20, is presented as a guide to good practice and sounds like an incentive for prudence in the face of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

For U.S. military officials seem to take the measure of the impact of social networks in disseminating information, but are intended anxious to preserve the security forces. "The enemy - Al-Qaida terrorists and criminals, in particular - a keen interest" publications made on these sites, the report provides.

First sent to the soldiers, the manual offers common sense measures. Soldiers in operation must not disseminate information that vague, and not to mention their rank, the names of their companions, or details of the equipment used. Military communication is also very sensitive to location-based functions, and calls to disable the GPS feature of smartphones.

On photo-sharing sites like Flickr or even Facebook, it is also asked not to use the "geo-tagging", to display geographic data. "If you doubt the appropriateness of placing such information on a sign in front of your garden, so do not do it online either," the statement said, addressing the families involved.

But the document also makes recommendations that go beyond the framework of security, including encouraging the soldiers to respect the copyright ... "The platforms of social networks enable people to connect, and express their personality, but this can be done without infringing copyright," the statement said.

The soldiers can not, on social networks, make links to sites promoting illegal downloading. LIMITATIONS OF THE AIR FORCE The manual also presents some guidelines for executives. In their use of social networks, unit managers must distinguish what is the chain of command, personal relationships, friendships and family.

Supervisors should not make self-promotion via social networks, or seek to convey a political message. But if the U.S. military seems to want to define a framework of good practices, the U.S. Air Force recently took drastic measures. In December, it blocked access to his personal information to sites like the New York Times, The Guardian News or Tech Buzz, who have published documents obtained by Wikileaks.

Since March, the Marines are in turn allowed to access sites like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube from their workplaces.

• Bertrand Duperrin: Links for this week (weekly) (28/11/2010)
• Elections 2012: Potential GOP Presidential Hopefuls Ramp Up PAC Activity Hinting At Who Could Run (04/12/2010)
• Médias sociaux: ça prend un de ces temps! (29/10/2010)
• Bertrand Duperrin: Links for this week (weekly) (03/10/2010)
• Facebook: les films (06/12/2010)