Blabbermouth

WW II-era poster promoting OPSEC

OPSEC (Operational Security) is generally defined as denying an adversary or enemy intel/info that will hurt your operations OR will be beneficial to their planning of operations.

Operations security (OPSEC) is a process that identifies critical information to determine if friendly actions can be observed by adversary intelligence systems, determines if information obtained by adversaries could be interpreted to be useful to them, and then executes selected measures that eliminate or reduce adversary exploitation of friendly critical information.

OPSEC is a methodology that denies critical information to an adversary. Unlike security programs that seek to protect classified information, OPSEC measures identify, control, and protect generally unclassified evidence that is associated with sensitive operations and activities.

OPSEC is generally regarded as not only a methodology, but also a mindset, and has its roots in the Vietnam Conflict. Concerned with intelligence leaks to the enemy, Admiral Ulysses Sharp created the "purple dragon" team, which created the OPSEC process that is used today (Wikipedia, OPSEC)

"U.S. airports and mass transit systems are tightening security ahead of the Fourth of July holiday and more air marshals will travel on overseas flights."

"Those checks would include watch lists such as the no-fly list; any clue that the suspects had shared an address with people in the U.S.; intelligence indicating the suspects made calls into the U.S.; and other similar types of investigative work" (More Air Marshals on Flights to Europe and Britain, Chertoff says.)

U. S. policy is to keep everything secret that pertains to "detainees." Everything is so secret that secret trials, secret prisons and secret courts are required.

But in the realm of OPSEC, where things really should be secret, what happens? The czar of homeland security gives out U.S. operational plans in a newspaper article! Does this make any sense? Why provide this info to any potential criminals targeting U.S. transportations systems?

Does anyone in Homeland Security have a clue? Do they color-code their ties appropriately to each day's color alert? I wonder how the average American changes tack, depending on the color of the alert that day? No trips to the shopping mall on Orange Days? Or is that Yellow Days?

Myself--I'm not a very good sentry for the czar, I'm afraid. I don't even know the threat level for fire in our neighboring forest, and it's Summer.

--Lisa