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Topics: Europe, Police, Politics, Royal Family, Sport, Social Media
Ella Scott
Topics: Europe, Police, Politics, Royal Family, Sport, Social Media
Royal family bodyguards have been blasted after an inquiry into their social media usage found thousands of uploaded posts that compromised the public figures’ safety.
Security is paramount where members of the Royal family are concerned due to potential threats to life, stalkers, and privacy concerns.
Last month, Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter revealed that a handful of bodyguards who were tasked with working for the Swedish monarchy and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, among other political figures, were allegedly uploading running workouts to a popular fitness app.
It’s understood these posts included clear location data that had the potential to put royals at risk.
Seven guards who were working for King Carl Gustaf, Queen Silvia, and Kristersson were allegedly uploading route-based information to Strava at regular intervals, the New York Times reported.
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The outlet wrote that ‘more than 1,400 workouts’ had been shared on the app, including a jog around a luxury resort in the Seychelles, where the King and Queen of Sweden were reportedly on holiday in 2023.
The data also revealed private addresses, according to the report, including that of the Prime Minister.
Some of the locations allegedly featured in the Strava exercise posts included the Alps, New York’s Central Park, a military base in Mali, and unknown areas where high-level government meetings were being held.
A bodyguard also revealed how to pass through the Drottningholm Palace, the monarch’s permanent residence outside of Stockholm, the outlet wrote.
By inadvertently ‘exposing’ the ‘private locations’ of the famous family, the seven bodyguards had caused a huge, potential ‘security risk’, GB News commented.
An official statement was later released by the Säkerhetspolisen (SÄPO) regarding the incident: “The Swedish Security Police take the information very seriously...This is a matter of data that could be used to gather information about the activities of our Service.
"Dignitaries that our Service is responsible for protecting are subject to several layers of protection, where their close protection by bodyguards is one layer...Our Service is now taking the necessary steps to ensure that our procedures are followed closely, so that this does not happen again,” the statement added.
Strava also assured users there was no ‘leak or breach’ of user data. The company encouraged ‘discretion’ among anyone working in ‘sensitive professions’ who might benefit from protecting their locations, as per the New York Times.
Neither the Prime Minister’s office nor the Swedish Royal Court have yet to comment on the worrying situation.
However, Dagens Nyheter reported that Swedish police are now conducting further investigations into the data exposure.