Israeli combat pilots jailed for storing classified info on smartphones

JERUSALEM (JTA)  – Two Israeli Air Force combat pilots were sentenced to jail and 12 others were disciplined for storing classified information on their smartphones.

The pilots stored maps, documents and other sensitive material on their phones, according to reports. Two of the pilots were jailed for five days.

The security breach came to light after one of the pilots lost his cellphone and reported what was contained on it to the military. The phone was found.

Other members of the squadron admitted to carrying the same information on their smartphones, Army Radio reported.

Military officials told the Times of Israel that if the information contained on the phones had fallen into the wrong hands, it could have been very damaging.

“The Air Force is treating the incident very seriously,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement, according to Haaretz.