The Indian Navy has put a ban on the use of Facebook by navy personnel. It has also banned smartphones at naval bases, dockyards and on-board warships. According to media reports, the order, issued on December 27, comes after seven naval personnel were caught leaking sensitive information to enemy intelligence agencies over social media. An operation in association with Central Intelligence Agencies and Naval Intelligence was earlier launched by the Andhra Pradesh Intelligence Department, following which an espionage racket having links with Pakistan was busted.
The ban has been extended to the messaging apps and social networking sites as well. Further, the ban on Facebook is being seen as a ban on all other Facebook-owned sites as well.
This banning step has been attributed to the recent cases where the enemy had targeted the naval personnel using these sites and social media network and had tried to elicit operational information.
The Indian Navy comprises a total of 67252 personnel and is viewed as the pioneering service which mastered the art of social media use in disseminating information about its operational achievements and matter.