Comments on: OPSEC In The Movies http://whatisopsec.com/2007/11/19/opsec-in-the-movies/ "That's Not OPSEC" Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:52:55 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.1 By: Jennjer http://whatisopsec.com/2007/11/19/opsec-in-the-movies/#comment-14 Jennjer Wed, 12 Dec 2007 19:17:23 +0000 http://whatisopsec.com/2007/11/19/opsec-in-the-movies/#comment-14 More of a family or personal OPSEC example that I remember from a movie comes from Home Alone. The part where the robbers had created a profile of the neighborhood, and knew who was and wasn't home based on the timers for their lights on the homes. More of a cheesy example, but our adversaries use the same techniques to put profiles together on us. The "5 characteristics of an indicator", Signature, Association, Profile, Contrast and Exposure... More of a family or personal OPSEC example that I remember from a movie comes from Home Alone. The part where the robbers had created a profile of the neighborhood, and knew who was and wasn’t home based on the timers for their lights on the homes. More of a cheesy example, but our adversaries use the same techniques to put profiles together on us. The “5 characteristics of an indicator”, Signature, Association, Profile, Contrast and Exposure…

]]> By: Ollie http://whatisopsec.com/2007/11/19/opsec-in-the-movies/#comment-10 Ollie Mon, 19 Nov 2007 22:08:49 +0000 http://whatisopsec.com/2007/11/19/opsec-in-the-movies/#comment-10 Great example of OPSEC in the silver screen. I submit my example for the OPSEC movie goer. A great example of protecting critical information can be found in the 1965 movie, Battle of the Bulge, starring Henry Fonda (again) and Robert Shaw, as well as a host of others. The scenes I refer to are when Henry Fonda, a police detective turned intelligence officer, discovers a key piece of critical information that the Germans: their lack of fuel reserves. At the beginning of the film, a German general officer points out to COL Hessler (Robert Shaw) a giant clock that will count down from 50 hours and explains that if they haven’t taken Antwerp by this time all of their supplies will be exhausted (a key piece of critical information if ever I saw one!). In the course of his intelligence duties, Henry Fonda observed that the German’s fuel drums floated when accidentally dropped in water. By combining this with other “pieces of the puzzle” such as the fact that German POWs were found to be carrying rubber hoses, he determined that the Germans were running low on fuel and having to siphon fuel on the battlefield. This discovery of their vulnerability led him to deduce that the German’s objective was a certain fuel depot. With the help of Telly Savalas and Charles Bronson, he blows the dump and almost singlehandedly stops the “Bulge”. While oversimplifying the actual Battle of the Bulge, it does show how the loss of critical information can highlight vulnerabilities that when exploited can result in a failed mission. Ollie Great example of OPSEC in the silver screen. I submit my example for the OPSEC movie goer.

A great example of protecting critical information can be found in the 1965 movie, Battle of the Bulge, starring Henry Fonda (again) and Robert Shaw, as well as a host of others.

The scenes I refer to are when Henry Fonda, a police detective turned intelligence officer, discovers a key piece of critical information that the Germans: their lack of fuel reserves.

At the beginning of the film, a German general officer points out to COL Hessler (Robert Shaw) a giant clock that will count down from 50 hours and explains that if they haven’t taken Antwerp by this time all of their supplies will be exhausted (a key piece of critical information if ever I saw one!).

In the course of his intelligence duties, Henry Fonda observed that the German’s fuel drums floated when accidentally dropped in water. By combining this with other “pieces of the puzzle” such as the fact that German POWs were found to be carrying rubber hoses, he determined that the Germans were running low on fuel and having to siphon fuel on the battlefield. This discovery of their vulnerability led him to deduce that the German’s objective was a certain fuel depot. With the help of Telly Savalas and Charles Bronson, he blows the dump and almost singlehandedly stops the “Bulge”.

While oversimplifying the actual Battle of the Bulge, it does show how the loss of critical information can highlight vulnerabilities that when exploited can result in a failed mission.

Ollie

]]> By: Revelator http://whatisopsec.com/2007/11/19/opsec-in-the-movies/#comment-8 Revelator Mon, 19 Nov 2007 21:27:49 +0000 http://whatisopsec.com/2007/11/19/opsec-in-the-movies/#comment-8 There are many but I gotta tell ya - I can't watch an episode of "24" without dreaming of getting these folks into a room for the OPSEC wall-to-wall counselling. There are many but I gotta tell ya - I can’t watch an episode of “24″ without dreaming of getting these folks into a room for the OPSEC wall-to-wall counselling.

]]>