OPSEC: The History of the Purple Dragon

PORTSMOUTH, VA, UNITED STATES

09.17.2020

Story by Kristi R Britt 

Norfolk Naval Shipyard

If you’ve explored the expansive installation of Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY), chances are you’ve seen Operations Security (OPSEC) bulletins posted around the buildings. Each bulletin has a targeted message to its audience, tips of the trade in identifying, controlling and protecting information from adversaries. Towering at the header of each bulletin sits a massive winged beast with purple scales, its yellow eyes staring back at the reader as they take in the useful bits of knowledge.

This purple dragon is the figurehead of the OPSEC program, its presence is a reminder of our nation’s journey in protecting the mission so that information does not fall into the wrong hands. But why? What is the history behind the purple dragon that has become such a staple for the program? It all started with a codename.

Dating back to the Vietnam War, seeds were planted for a national OPSEC policy under the unclassified code name, PURPLE DRAGON. PURPLE DRAGON was a one-time Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) initiated survey which addressed retaining the element of surprise for fighter-bomber strikes against North Vietnamese military targets in an operation known as “Rolling Thunder” and for B-52 operations known as “Arc Light.”

The effort came from early involvements in the war. When several of the military operations were not successful, it was concluded that U.S. forces were inadvertently revealing vital information to the enemy. Military leaders considered what information could be dangerous in the hands of an adversary and how it may be collected. With PURPLE DRAGON in effect and helping to exploit the weaknesses in protecting information, the U.S. military was then able to remedy those weaknesses and keep knowledge contained.

From its inception and throughout the Vietnam War, PURPLE DRAGON proved a major success at improving the combat effectiveness of the units and operations it surveyed. In fact, it was so successful that the JCS led the charge of instilling operations security programs and protocols, based on the PURPLE DRAGON model. These programs became mandatory for all U.S. commands throughout the world, continuing to expand to government agencies and other agencies outside of the Department of Defense (DoD) over the coming years. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan issued the National Security Decision Directive 298 (NSDD-298) which established the national OPSEC policy, outlining the OPSEC five-step process that we follow today: identify critical information; analyze the threat; analyze vulnerabilities; assess the risk; apply countermeasures.

So, whenever you see that purple dragon standing tall, remember that it represents our nation, Navy and shipyard taking the necessary steps to protect information – shielding it from our enemies. To learn more about OPSEC, visit https://www.navy.mil/ah_online/opsec/.

• Date Taken: 09.17.2020
• Date Posted: 09.29.2020 13:45
• Story ID: 379440
• Location: PORTSMOUTH, VA, US