According to a current alert from the U.S. Army’s Criminal Investigation Division, somebody is sending free smartwatches to navy members throughout all American branches. But it’s not a “thank you for your service” scenario — the report says that the units could also be loaded with malware, meant to steal private data or listen in on conversations by way of built-in microphones.

The CID alert (noticed by PCMag and Defense News) doesn’t truly provide any proof that the smartwatches are being focused to particular customers, searching after both state secrets and techniques or the extra regular private phishing try. (Military members with safety clearance aren’t even allowed to carry private electronics previous safe checkpoints, together with telephones and wearables, for obvious reasons.) A extra apparent wrongdoer is a scam called “brushing,” during which sellers will ship unsolicited packages to addresses, faking that cargo as a verified “sale” on websites like Amazon, after which posting a pretend evaluation.

This rip-off is normally accomplished with cheap, light-weight gadgets (I’ve gotten child wipes myself), however some knock-off smartwatches at the moment are so low cost that it’d simply make sense. Apple Watch imitators can be found for as little as $15, and even at such low costs there’s stiff competitors for cut price hunters.

The Army web page recommends that service members don’t activate the watches, simply in case they’re rigged to scan native Wi-Fi or linked telephones for information, and report the units to their chain of command or on to the CID tip portal.