As USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) maintains an operationally-ready status, prepared to deploy whenever called upon, it is imperative to remember the fundamentals of Operational Security (OPSEC). 

 “The importance of OPSEC is to protect sensitive, unclassified information,” said Lt. Diane Cowling, Harry S. Truman’s OPSEC Officer. “The major concerns are when service members intentionally or unintentionally expose our critical information to the public.”

Critical information is unclassified, yet sensitive information. Information that doesn’t pose a significant threat on its own, but combined with other information, can  provide advantages to our adversaries .

According to Cowling, most of the time Sailors unintentionally divulge information due to simple mistakes such as lack of situational awareness when having conversations, placing the plan of day (also known as the green sheet) in the trash, not encrypting emails, and discussing critical information through social media posts and unsecure communication lines. All of these situations can be easily avoided as long as you are aware of them.

According to Information Technician 3rd Class Matthew Villacorta, who works in Harry S. Truman’s information security division, adversaries are becoming more and more technologically advanced and social media is an open platform where they have easy access to a huge amount of information.

“Social media is perhaps the biggest threat to OPSEC today,” said Villacorta. “Many people never change their security settings, and as a result very important basic information like birthdays, emails, phone numbers, and addresses are available to anyone that clicks on your profile. Even something as simple as posting a geographically tagged photo as you’re getting off the ship for liberty can give the enemy a lot of information. And, that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”

According to Villacorta, the threat goes beyond the person in question and extends to everyone linked to your account.

“Through your profile, they can see who your friends and family are and get ahold of their information,” said Villacorta. “There have been cases in the past where ISIS was threatening the family members of military members through social media sites, so this is a very real threat.”

Many of these threats can be mitigated through a few simple steps.

“Learn what paper needs to be shredded, encrypt emails, adjust settings on social media sites, be cautious when befriending someone new and take a moment to notice your surroundings when sharing information,” said Cowling.

Information security personnel remind Sailors to not make themselves an easy target. Change passwords often and make them long and complex. Do not post details about everyday life. Read security and privacy statements before accepting to make an informed decision, and always remember anything and everything posted will exist on the internet forever; there is no such thing as a true delete.

Harry S. Truman is currently conducting maintenance and training in port at Naval Station Norfolk after returning from a regularly scheduled deployment.

For more information, visit http://www.navy.mil/, http://www.facebook.com/usnavy/, or http://www.twitter.com/usnavy/.

For more news from USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75), visit www.navy.mil/.