Below I will post a more acurate and probably 'politically correct' list of OPSEC rules we should follow.
First what is OPSEC? It stands for Operational Security. Otherwise know as what the heck our soldiers are doing any and every where. Most stuff is supposed to be pretty closed mouth or completely top secret. Be it deployments, training, school, field time, missions or whatnot. This stuff needs to be kept on the down low for their security and safety. No one wants them to be put in danger because the tango (Target or bad guy for y'all that dont understand the lingo. If I lose you let me know and I can translate for y'all.) knows where they are, what they are doing, and/or what weapons they have with them.
Some people just don't have the common sense to get that though! Don't get me wrong I have slipped on a minor thing or two with Nic. When he has to leave for any amount of time I usually post "You suck Army. Make the next few weeks/over month pass quickly. I want my studly butt (code for husband) back fast!" When he was deployed I did announce that Nic would be home in less than a month!!! About 2 weeks left!! Rumors are next week he will be home!!!... You know we get excited! But I did not announce "He'll be home Tuesday at 2200!" For one I did know OPSEC... another is that I didnt know the exact date and time he was supposed to be home until the last minute. He literally called 5 days before he was supposed to be state side to let me know the date he was going to be home, but I had to find out where to go and didn't know the estimated time until the day before and knew the morning he hit state side what time the redeployment ceremony (welcome home celebration) was. Yeah that sucked finding out everything at pretty much the last minute, but well I wont get into the frusteration him and I both faced with the FRG and them not getting their shit together...
Anyway... OPSEC is pretty important, but some people just dont get it and it can cause some serious problems. When some big mouth who knows the rules but doesnt care/think they dont pertain to them/are selfish blabs about everything that is going on with every single detail layed out on the line everyone can suffer. I can't tell you how may times I've heard about redeployment being delayed bc some spouse let every detail out on the internet. YOU CANT DO THAT PEOPLE! What if some terrorist found out this information, knew exactly what plane your soldier (or airman, marine, coastie... I use soldier as a simple form because my husband is in the Army. No not everyone of them has soldier as a title!) was on and knew when and where is was leaving from then decided to destroy that plane with HUNDREDS of soldiers on it! THAT'S BAD! So yes they can, have, and will delay them coming home for you blabbering. Also you never want to announce where it is they are going. Ok Iraq, Afghanistan, and Africa are broad enough terms, but you really arent even supposed to announce that. The name of the war (Operation Iraqi Freedom for example) is what you are supposed to use. I'm pretty sure we all have broken that one (I know I have... IRAQ sucked!!!) Ok. You're forgiven for that, but dont you EVER announce exactly what town, FOB... where they are at. Once again that's putting a target on your soldier. WE. DONT. WANT. THAT.
Here's the biggest one that erks me to the core! All you spouses have seen it and some have done it (if I find you I will prob lose my shit on you!) How to put this in the nicest way possible with y'all understanding... MIND YOUR BUSINESS UNTIL IT BECOMES OFFICIAL! My husband was recently at NTC (not breaking OPSEC rules by saying he WAS there... it would be breaking the rules had I said he IS there... get that?!?!) and a soldier was in an accident there and killed. Very tragic to hear. My heart hurts everytime I hear about a solder being killed in any sort of accident here at home or away in war. But because some here someone heard about someone dying at NTC a million and one wives here at Ft Riley were freaking out and calling everyone they could to find out if it was their husband or someone they knew. I couldnt tell you how many posts I saw from wives on Facebook asking who it was, what happened...
Here's the thing people! If it was your spouse, they would call you before ANYONE ELSE! You would be the first to be contacted. If it was your best friend's spouse she would be contacted first. You see the pattern there?! Then once the family was contacted and things were taken care of they will usually post it in the news paper/tv to announce who and usually what happened. That's when it becomes your business. When it's made official to the public. Until then just chill out and let it be taken care of. I have sadly heard a few stories about someone not minding their own business and posting on Facebook and/or where ever else they can that ----- died today in ---- and it happened ---- before the spouse or emergency contact was even contacted! How it the hell would you like to hear from a complete stranger on Facebook that your husband is in critical condition or dead! I'm serious people! It's happened bc people are nosy and have no sense that the world and drama does NOT revolve around them. My heart goes out to the people that have had to find out thes way and a giant bitch slap goes to those that started it all. You should truly be ashamed of yourself and I hope the military comes down on you HARD!
So before you go about snooping around and spreading around everything.... Stop. Think. Wonder if what you are about to post will put your soldier or even yourself at risk. Ask how many Ft Riley homes and vehicle have been broken into while the soliders were at NTC recently bc the spouse announced on Facebook they were home alone for the next ? amount of time. Then you can easily go to a page they are on where they tell you exactly what neighborhood they live in, even some the exact address. Think SMART people!!
So I'm sorry if this post seems mean and little brutal... well actually no I'm not. Some people the only way they learn is to be slapped in the face with OPSEC when they fianlly get into serious trouble bc they can't seem to keep thier mouths shut!. I love all you mil spouses! We are a special breed of our own. We have to look out for our soldiers, ourselves and eachother. Just think first please! I want my husband to be safe as much as I want all soldiers to be safe.
Keep it shut and safe!
Carrie Linn
OPSEC, also known as Operational Security, is the principle that we, as Army wives and family members, should all abide by when talking about our soldiers. If you’ve been on any military related message board on the internet, you have more than likely seen a warning to be sure to practice OPSEC. This means protecting the information you know about your soldier and his unit.
Generally, it means that you should not give out the following:
- Your soldier’s exact location overseas
- Any information on troop movements – this includes any movement while they are deployed and in transit to/from theater (including R&R). Do not ever give dates or times.
- Any information on weapons systems, how they train or numbers – for this reason, many pictures from overseas can easily violate OPSEC
If your soldier is in a special operations unit, the OPSEC guidelines can be stricter. You may not be able to say he is deployed at all much less where he is. His unit and/or FRG should provide the OPSEC guidelines for these situations.
Always abide by the rules set forth by his unit. Just because it is on the news does not mean that you can talk about the issue. By talking about it, you are only verifying the information.
CORRECT:
My soldier is deployed in support of Iraqi Freedom or Enduring Freedom
INCORRECT:
My soldier is in XYZ Unit and is stationed at ABC Camp in XXX city in Iraq.
Give only general locations IF his unit allows it. The above incorrect statement is entirely too much information.
INCORRECT: My soldier’s unit is returning from deployment and flying into XYZ Airport at 8pm next Thursday.
Never give dates or times for troop movements. Keep in mind that “next Thursday” is a date. This includes R&R dates as well as deployment and redeployment dates. Planes have been delayed for days or weeks because an excited family member made this information public.
INCORRECT: Please pray for my soldier. He called today and told me he is going out on a very dangerous mission tonight. They will be gone for three days and I’m very worried about him.
When our soldiers are in dangerous situations, it is natural to want to reach out to others. But the above statement puts your soldier and his unit in danger. You could have very well just alerted the enemy about their mission.
It is important to realize that putting together the bits and pieces needed to create the larger picture can be amazingly simple on the internet. Many mistakenly believe that if they don’t talk about it all at once, the information is safe. This is wrong and dangerous to assume.
The internet is a wonderful tool but in regards to our military, it is a very dangerous one as well. It takes only minutes of searching online to find enough pieces of information that could potentially endanger our soldiers.
DEPLOYMENT TICKERS
Many family members like to use deployment tickers to count down their soldier’s deployment. Never have a ticker that shows XX days until he returns. If you must have a ticker, then have one with the amount of time he has been gone. Although it is best to not have this type of ticker at all.
Finally, for your own personal safety, be very aware of what you are putting on the internet or saying in conversations in public. With the internet, it is not difficult to track down an address and phone number. Do not make yourself a target by letting the world know that your husband is deployed.
PERSEC
PERSEC is also known as personal security. Like OPSEC, this involves guarding the information that you know. Do not give out your soldier’s name along with rank. This includes blacking out his name tape and rank in pictures. If he is in a special operations unit, you should also black out any unit affiliation.
Be vague about your personal information on the internet. This is plain common sense in just every day life – regardless of if your family member is in the military.
The old saying loose lips sink ships still holds true today. Keep your soldier, your family and his unit safe by keeping the information you know to yourself. You never know who is lurking and gathering information on message boards, myspace pages and profiles. Better safe than sorry!
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