Putin's bodyguard accidentally leaked location via fitness app Strava

By using fitness app Strava, the Russian president's bodyguard involuntarily exposed his whereabouts. This could be dangerous for Putin.

Finn Michalski/t-online

The eponymous social network and fitness app Strava has taken the world by storm. Enthusiastic athletes can run or cycle there and share their sporting activities with others. What primarily provides fun and an overview of one's own and friends' progress for most average users can quickly become a security risk for powerful people in the world.

French newspaper Le Monde revealed in its investigation that conclusions about the location of the head of state can be drawn based on the movements of bodyguards on Strava. Russian President Vladimir Putin's bodyguards also appear to be using the app, and the Kremlin leader has for years denied owning anywhere near the two luxury properties.

Exercise app Strava allows users to record their running routes and share them publicly. However, many people don’t realize that they are inadvertently leaking geospatial data and thus their location. Now this may displease Putin: a current example shows the route of the Kremlin chief's bodyguard to a vast and magnificent estate next to the Black Sea and a country estate in the Karelia region.

Putin's secret estate

Plans for the disputed Black Sea property have emerged in the past to show how Putin should protect himself on the secretive property. It is said that the Italian-designed palace is almost 40 times the size of Monaco.

Le Monde's research shows that at least four agents from the Federal Security Service (FSO), which is responsible for protecting the Russian president, were seen near the facility on multiple occasions between 2019 and 2024 – always between the end of August and the end of 2024. End of September 2024. It is suspected that Putin was also present at the same time.

Data shows that on August 4, 2021, a member of the FSO also circled a property several times in the Karelia region of northern Russia. Putin also denies owning it. During the six-kilometre route, he ran along the fence of the vast grounds surrounding the villa, starting and ending his run in the grounds' hangar.

Putin's security measures

The French newspaper underlined its hypothesis, saying the agents regularly attended formal appointments by the president. Research shows that one of the bodyguards appeared in the Brazilian capital Brasilia around the 2019 BRICS summit.

Another example was last year, when it was known that Putin wanted to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The meeting is widely expected to be held in Vladivostok, near the North Korean border. In fact, according to Strava, they met in Blagoveshchensk, Amur Region, where one of Putin's bodyguards was present three days earlier.

This could represent a major flaw in the actions of a Russian president who otherwise fears extremely for his own safety. For security reasons, Putin himself does not use smartphones and computers. He also accurately recreated the offices of all of his residences, so no conclusions can be drawn about his actual whereabouts based on video transmissions.

Running app Strava recently made headlines after a Russian military officer died while running in July 2023. The soldier, who regularly uses the app, sparked speculation that the Ukrainian army might be trying to assassinate him after his last post was liked by the head of Ukraine's military intelligence service. It is unclear whether this is a real account or a malicious provocation from a user.

source

(t-online)

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