Some of the world’s top leaders’ movements have been tracked online through a fitness app used by their bodyguards, an investigation has suggested.

A report from a French newspaper Le Monde said several US Secret Service agents use Strava fitness app, which revealed the highly confidential movements of the US president Joe Bidenpresidential rivals Donald trump card and Kamala Harris and others world leaders.

The investigation also identified Strava users among the security staff of French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Strava is a popular app among runners and cyclists that allows users to record and share their physical activities within a community.

In one case, Le Monde tracked the activity of Macron’s bodyguards on Strava, revealing that the French president spent a weekend in Honfleur, a seaside resort in Normandy, in 2021 – a private trip that did not was revealed publicly in his official program.

The report also indicated that the locations of former first lady Melania Trump and current first lady Jill Biden could be identified by monitoring the Strava profiles of their security teams.

The US Secret Service told the newspaper it does not believe the protection it provides is compromised in any way.

In another example, Le Monde used an agent’s Strava profile to reveal the location of a hotel where Biden stayed in San Francisco for high-stakes talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2023. Hours before Biden arrived, the agent went jogging from the hotel and used Strava to track his route.

In a statement to the newspaper, the Secret Service said its personnel are not permitted to use personal electronic devices while on duty during protection missions, but “we do not prohibit an employee’s personal use of social media off duty.”

He continued: “The affected staff have been notified. We will review this information to determine if any additional training or guidance is required. We do not assess that there have been impacts on protection operations or threats to any protected person,” he added. Locations “are regularly revealed as part of public program releases.”

The newspaper identified 26 US agents, 12 members of France’s GSPR (Security Group of the Presidency of the Republic) and six members of Russia’s FSO (Federal Protection Service) responsible for presidential security, all with public profiles on Strava, sharing their effectively locations. online, even during official travel.

Macron’s office said on Monday that the consequences of the problems reported by Le Monde “are very light and in no way affect the security of the president of the republic”. But, he added: “However, the chief of staff sent a memo to agents asking them not to use this app.”

For security reasons, Le Monde chose not to reveal the names of the bodyguards.