A Five-Euro Tracker. A 500-Million-Euro Warship. An Obvious Gap.

John Z Black Apr 21, 2026 Policy, Law & Governance #opsec #maritime-security #bluetooth #airtag #navy #physical-security #wef

You can spend half a billion euros on a naval frigate and still get tracked by a gadget from a five euro bargain bin.

A Dutch journalist just proved it by mailing a greeting card to the HNLMS Evertsen. Tucked inside was a cheap Bluetooth tracker. The card was delivered on board, and for the next 24 hours, he watched the warship sail toward Cyprus right from his phone.

The Dutch Navy has since banned greeting cards with batteries, but the lesson goes much deeper than that. Physical mail is a massive, unscreened delivery mechanism into high security environments. If we treat envelopes as inert paper, we are ignoring the reality of modern consumer tech.

It is time to look at what’s coming through your mailroom. Because if a greeting card can track a warship, it can certainly track your office.

Read the full story of the HNLMS Evertsen OPSEC failure and the future of maritime security