1. General

1. The purpose of an OPSEC survey is to thoroughly examine an operation or activity to determine if adequate protection from adversary intelligence exploitation exists.

2. Ideally, the operation or activity being surveyed will be using OPSEC measures to protect its critical information. The OPSEC survey is used as a check on how effective the measures are. The survey will determine if the critical information identified during the OPSEC planning process is being protected.

3. A survey cannot be conducted until after an operation or activity has at least identified its critical information. Without a basis of identified critical information, there can be no specific determination that actual OPSEC vulnerabilities exist.

1. Each OPSEC survey is unique. Surveys differ in the nature of the information requiring protection, the adversary collection capability, and the environment of the activity to be surveyed.

2. In combat, a survey's emphasis must be on identifying operational indicators that signal friendly intentions, capabilities, and/or limitations and that will permit the adversary to counter friendly operations or reduce their effectiveness.

3. In peacetime, surveys generally seek to correct weaknesses that disclose information useful to potential adversaries in the event of future conflict. Many activities, such as operational unit tests, practice alerts, and major exercises, are of great interest to a potential adversary because they provide insight into friendly readiness, plans, crisis procedures, and C2 capabilities that enhance that adversary's long-range planning.

1. OPSEC surveys are different from security evaluations or inspections. A survey attempts to produce an adversary's view of the operation or activity being surveyed. A security inspection seeks to determine if an organization is in compliance with the appropriate security directives and regulations.

2. Surveys are always planned and conducted by the organization responsible for the operation or activity that is to be surveyed. Inspections may be conducted without warning by outside organizations.

3. OPSEC surveys are not a check on the effectiveness of an organization's security programs or its adherence to security directives. In fact, survey teams will be seeking to determine if any security measures are creating OPSEC indicators.

4. Surveys are not punitive inspections, and no grades or evaluations are awarded as a result of them. Surveys are not designed to inspect individuals but are employed to evaluate operations and systems used to accomplish missions.

5. To obtain accurate information, a survey team must depend on positive cooperation and assistance from the organizations participating in the operation or activity being surveyed. If team members must question individuals, observe activities, and otherwise gather data during the course of the survey, they will inevitably appear as inspectors, unless this nonpunitive objective is made clear.

6. Although reports are not provided to the surveyed unit's higher headquarters, OPSEC survey teams may forward to senior officials the lessons learned on a nonattribution basis. The senior officials responsible for the operation or activity then decide to further disseminate the survey's lessons learned.

1. A command survey is performed using only command personnel and concentrates on events within the particular command.

2. A formal survey requires a survey team composed of members from inside and outside the command and will normally cross command lines (after prior coordination) to survey supporting and related operations and activities. Formal surveys are initiated by a letter or message stating the subject of the survey, naming the team leader and members, and indicating when the survey will be conducted. Commands, activities, and locations to be visited may also be listed, with the notation that the team may visit additional locations if required during the field portion of the survey.

3. Both types of surveys follow the same basic sequence and procedures that are established in the annexes to this appendix.

1. Careful prior planning, thorough data collection, and thoughtful analysis of the results are the key phases of an effective OPSEC survey.

2. The following annexes describe the three phases of an OPSEC survey.