It only takes one small detail, sometimes, just one signal, to put an entire ship at risk.
That was the message Chief Warrant Officer 2 Casey Jones, the intelligence technician aboard Pre-Commissioning Unit John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) emphasized looking ahead to what operation security (OPSEC) looks like today. With May serving as National OPSEC Awareness Month, the question of how the phrase “loose lips sink ships” has evolved should be at the forefront of discussion.
Jones, a former enlisted intelligence specialist with 16 years in naval intelligence, has deployed across multiple platforms in high-risk environments. From counter-drug missions to combat operations, his career has placed him on the front lines of how information, shared or exposed, can shape outcomes. That experience now informs how he views OPSEC in 2026 and why it demands a different mindset from today’s Sailors.
Lt. Cmdr. Travis Callaghan, John F. Kennedy’s public affairs officer, said it is important for the crew to understand that the social media environment many have been raised in must be thought of differently as a military member than as a civilian.
“Today’s Sailors grew up connected, and that’s both a strength and a risk,” said Callaghan. “Our job is to help them understand that even small digital footprints can leave big openings.”
A notable example is from USS Manchester where an illegal unauthorized Starlink Wi-Fi device was used to access the internet while deployed to watch movies and scroll on social media was discovered. The scheme created massive operational and cybersecurity vulnerabilities that could be exploited by our adversaries.
“Those Sailors were more worried about getting a message from home than the 100-plus people around them,” said Jones. “One individual’s actions could have affected the lives of many.”
The moment underscores a critical shift in modern OPSEC that the threat is no longer limited to what Sailors say, it extends to what their devices transmit automatically. Smartphones and wearable technology constantly generate and share data, often without the user realizing it.
“It used to be, ‘watch what you write in a letter home,’” said Jones. “Now it’s everything, every keystroke, every signal, could be seen.”
For crews like those preparing to take John F. Kennedy to sea again, that evolving landscape demands constant awareness. The accessibility of Wi-Fi, personal electronics, and social media has blurred the line between convenience and vulnerability.
“Given the current state of affairs at home, and across the globe between adversaries and near-peer competitors of the United States, failing to secure our digital data, whether it be comments on social media, background data transmitting from phone apps, or connecting to unsecured Wi-Fi, has the potential to cost the lives of our shipmates not just aboard JFK, but the Navy as a whole,” said Ensign Nicholas Willey, John F. Kennedy’s cyber officer. “It falls on us to maintain our diligence, and learning this option the hard way is not an option. Our adversaries rely heavily upon our lapses in OPSEC judgement, and to be frank, the consequences can be just as severe as a [communications security] incident.”
Protecting the ship doesn’t need to always be a large, grand moment. In reality, it is the small conscious choices that make operational security successful. It is important to always think OPSEC when using email, phone, chat rooms, and message boards, sharing sensitive information can compromise national security. For more information on OPSEC, refer to Commander, Naval Information Forces.