U.S. Navy forces busted for giving secrets to video game producers

WASHINGTON - Agence France-Presse

This product image released by Electronic Arts shows action from the video game "Medal of Honor: Warfighter." Seven members of the secretive Navy SEAL Team 6, including one involved in the mission to kill Osama bin Laden, have been punished for allegedly divulging classified information to the maker of the game, senior Navy officials said Thursday, Nov. 8, 2012. (AP Photo/Electronic Arts)

Seven members of an elite U.S. Navy SEAL (Sea, Air, and Land) team, including one who participated in the raid that killed al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, have been reprimanded for disclosing classified material while helping produce a videogame.

All seven of the special operations forces who were punished were members of the elite SEAL Team Six, according to CBS News, which first reported the reprimands. CBS said the seven worked for two days this spring and summer as paid consultants on the videogame.

Two senior chief special operators and five chief special operators received a reprimand on Nov. 7 for their involvement in the production of a videogame entitled “Medal of Honor: Warfighter,” released by game maker Electronic Arts Inc, said a Navy official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

 All seven were punished in an administrative proceeding for disclosing classified information and misusing command gear while working with the game makers, who advertise that the videogame is more accurate because of the help they had from special operations forces. The seven each received a punitive letter of reprimand and were docked half pay for two months, a Navy official said. A defense official said all Pentagon employees are required to follow Defense Department guidance on outside employment, a measure put into place to ensure “the highest ethical behavior.”