ALCOAST 020/23 - JAN 2023 OPERATIONS SECURITY (OPSEC) AWARENESS MONTH

R 181714Z JAN 23 MID200080661956U
FM COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC
TO ALCOAST
BT
UNCLAS
ALCOAST 020/23
SSIC 5510
SUBJ: OPERATIONS SECURITY (OPSEC) AWARENESS MONTH
A. Coast Guard Operations Security (OPSEC) Program Manual,
COMDTINST M5510.24A
B. National Security Presidential Memorandum-28, The National
Operations Security Program
C. DHS Instruction 121-01-019 Operations Security Program
1. The National OPSEC Program has designated January as OPSEC
Awareness Month across the Federal Government. The Chief Security
Officer of the Coast Guard (DCMS-34) encourages all members of the
Coast Guard community to take two steps forward in OPSEC
Awareness. These two steps can significantly raise our Coast Guard
OPSEC Profile and increase the safety and security of our
resources, our information, and our personnel.
    a. Recognize Coast Guard Critical Information. All missions in
the Coast Guard depend on Critical Information. These are the
essential pieces of information that support mission success and
can lead to mission failure if compromised by an adversary. While
some examples are easily recognized, such as classified reports,
the OPSEC Program focuses on information which is not otherwise
protected by classification. Examples include budget reports that
provide information about our financial priorities and shortfalls,
and maintenance schedules that show gaps in our capabilities.
REF (A) maintains a Critical Information List (CIL) at the
Enterprise Level. This provides guidance for units to create local
CILs for local OPSEC Awareness. What information does your unit
consider critical? Know what to protect.
    b. Recognize the strategic value of your information and your
position within the Coast Guard Community. During this month of
increased focus on OPSEC, we ask that you take a moment to step
back and look at how you fit into the bigger picture. When
information is heavily protected, an adversary will look for
less-secure, secondary sources and put together a bigger picture
from smaller pieces. Coast Guard mission success is the underlying
goal of our daily work and by virtue of our employment, military
position, volunteer status, or contract with the Coast Guard, we
all hold knowledge essential to that success. The success or
failure of Coast Guard missions can begin with things as mundane
and repetitive as our Monday meetings, emails, conversations on a
smoke break, or discussions with friends online when we are not at
work. What is your mission? Know what to protect and understand
why you are protecting it.
2. The DCMS-34 OPSEC Program Office will initiate mandated annual
reporting requirements each January to identify strengths and
opportunities within the Coast Guard OPSEC Program. This ALCOAST
establishes a recurring January schedule for collection of data
supporting our mandated Coast Guard Annual OPSEC Report and will
be incorporated into the update of REF (A). A link is
provided below for unit OPSEC Coordinators or other designated
OPSEC personnel to respond. The link is also posted on the DCMS-34
OPSEC SharePoint site. All units are required to respond.
Information will be used to establish overall trends and develop
mitigation strategies for potential vulnerabilities. Data will be
used to respond to National OPSEC Program REF (B) and DHS REF (C)
reporting requirements and will be used with other assessment
tools to establish overall OPSEC profiles at the District, Area,
and Enterprise levels, supporting risk-based decisions and
prioritization of resources. OPSEC questions? Email OPSEC@uscg.mil
LINK TO 2023 ANNUAL OPSEC REPORTING FORM: 2023 collection dates:
January 09-February 09
(Copy and Paste URL Below into Browser)

https://cglink.uscg.mil/2023OPSEC

LINK TO DCMS-34 OPSEC PROGRAM SHAREPOINT SITE:
(Copy and Paste URL Below into Browser)

https://uscg.sharepoint-mil.us/sites/dcms34/OPSEC

3. POC: DCMS-34 OPSEC Program Manager Karen J. Newhouse,
(202) 372-3706, Karen.J.Newhouse@uscg.mil.
4. Mr. Albert Curry, Jr., Deputy for Materiel Readiness (DCMS-DMR),
sends.
5. Internet release is authorized.