OPSEC

THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT! As a military wife, there are things that I cannot say for the safety of our troops. If certain information ends up in the wrong hands, it can and has lead to very serious consequences. In order to prevent any misunderstandings, I have decided to share the OPSEC (Operational Security) rules with you because I feel that everyone should understand why I will not give out sensitive information.

I have copied this information from Army.com.


Generally, it means that you should not give out the following:

(1) Your soldier’s exact location overseas

(2) 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.

(3) Any information on weapons systems, how they train or numbers – for this reason, many pictures from overseas can easily violate OPSEC.


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."

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."

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.


The old saying "loose lips sink ships" still holds true today. You never know who is lurking and gathering information on message boards, myspace pages, and profiles. Better safe than sorry!