The Homeland Security Advisory System is designed to guide our protective measures when specific information to a particular sector or geographic region is received. It combines threat information with vulnerability assessments and provides communications to public safety officials and the public.
• Homeland Security Threat Advisories contain actionable information about an incident involving, or a threat targeting, critical national networks or infrastructures or key assets.
• Homeland Security Information Bulletins communicate information of interest to the nation’s critical infrastructures that do not meet the timeliness, specificity, or significance thresholds of warning messages.
• Color-coded Threat Level System is used to communicate with public safety officials and the public at-large through a threat-based, color-coded system so that protective measures can be implemented to reduce the likelihood or impact of an attack.
This system was established in Homeland Security Presidential Directive 3 which creates a Homeland Security Advisory System to inform all levels of government and local authority, as well as the public, to the current risk of terrorist acts. The System involves a five-level, color-coded Threat Condition indicator to correspond to the current situation. Agency-specific Protective Measures associated with each Threat Condition will allow a flexible, graduated and appropriate response to a change in the nation’s level of risk. (See full text below)

Alert Colors Defined

Like the weather and traffic reports, terrorism alerts have become a routine part of news broadcasts. Most of us realize green is good and red is bad, but the specifics of each level and how it effects us may not be common knowledge. Terrorism is one instance where what you don't know certainly can hurt you.

Where Did It Come From?
President Bush created the Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS) to improve communication between the government and public regarding terrorism. September 11 taught us that information is not the sole property of the intelligence community. Since the threat of terrorism affects every citizen, an informed public is a safe public. The HSAS established the color-coding system as a means of informing citizens and government agencies of terrorism-related risks. The system is comparable to other federal warning systems, such as weather alerts, with the purpose of informing, rather than creating panic. The alerts are essentially a guide to the current terrorism climate.

What is the Alert System?
The alerts consist of a threat condition and corresponding protective measures. They rate the current risk atmosphere and recommend appropriate responses. Determination of an alert level is based upon the credibility, source, and severity of threat-related information.

The severity of an alert determines what actions to take as well as who needs to act. They are intended to deter terrorist activities and provide a source of information for law enforcement, government officials, and the private sector. Each alert level activates specific security measures or checks. Threat conditions can apply to the nation, a regional, a state or particular targeted location.

The Colors Decoded
• Green = Low Condition (low risk of attacks)
• Blue = Guarded Condition (general risk of attacks)
• Yellow = Elevated Condition (significant risk of attacks)
• Orange = High Condition (high risk of attacks)
• Red = Severe Condition (severe risk of attacks)

At the green and blue levels, recommended protective measures target emergency personnel and government officials. They include tasks such as monitoring emergency systems and procedures. These measures basically ensure the proper mechanisms are in place should the need ever arise. Think of green and blue alerts as a call for readiness, comparable to periodically checking the contents of your first aid kit at home.

The protective measures for yellow alerts are also directed at officials and emergency personnel for the most part. These alerts recommend heightened surveillance of targeted locales and activating emergency procedures on an as-needed basis. You may notice an increased police presence on busy highways, for example.

Orange alerts, on the other hand, call for protective measures from government as well as the private sector. At this level, the average citizen may be directly affected by an alert. Coordination of law enforcement efforts, monitoring operation of the businesses sector (determining whether staff should be present in offices or work from another location, for example), and heightened security at public events are recommended.

Red alerts call for full activation of emergency and security systems. At this point, all sectors are alerted and encouraged to respond accordingly. Transportation, government offices, and public facilities are monitored or closed as needed. Travel plans, work schedules, or daily routines of the average citizen will likely feel an impact at this heightened alert level.

The color system is intended to inform and coordinate antiterrorism safety measures at every level of our country. In most cases, the average citizen's routine is not noticeably affected, but without understanding an alert's meaning, it is impossible to be prepared or make informed choices.

Homeland Security Presidential Directive-3:

March 11, 2002

SUBJECT: Homeland Security Advisory System

Purpose

The Nation requires a Homeland Security Advisory System to provide a comprehensive and effective means to disseminate information regarding the risk of terrorist acts to Federal, State, and local authorities and to the American people. Such a system would provide warnings in the form of a set of graduated "Threat Conditions" that would increase as the risk of the threat increases. At each Threat Condition, Federal departments and agencies would implement a corresponding set of "Protective Measures" to further reduce vulnerability or increase response capability during a period of heightened alert.

This system is intended to create a common vocabulary, context, and structure for an ongoing national discussion about the nature of the threats that confront the homeland and the appropriate measures that should be taken in response. It seeks to inform and facilitate decisions appropriate to different levels of government and to private citizens at home and at work.

Homeland Security Advisory System

The Homeland Security Advisory System shall be binding on the executive branch and suggested, although voluntary, to other levels of government and the private sector. There are five Threat Conditions, each identified by a description and corresponding color. From lowest to highest, the levels and colors are:

Low = Green;
Guarded = Blue;
Elevated = Yellow;
High = Orange;
Severe = Red.

The higher the Threat Condition, the greater the risk of a terrorist attack. Risk includes both the probability of an attack occurring and its potential gravity. Threat Conditions shall be assigned by the Attorney General in consultation with the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security. Except in exigent circumstances, the Attorney General shall seek the views of the appropriate Homeland Security Principals or their subordinates, and other parties as appropriate, on the Threat Condition to be assigned. Threat Conditions may be assigned for the entire Nation, or they may be set for a particular geographic area or industrial sector. Assigned Threat Conditions shall be reviewed at regular intervals to determine whether adjustments are warranted.

For facilities, personnel, and operations inside the territorial United States, all Federal departments, agencies, and offices other than military facilities shall conform their existing threat advisory systems to this system and henceforth administer their systems consistent with the determination of the Attorney General with regard to the Threat Condition in effect.

The assignment of a Threat Condition shall prompt the implementation of an appropriate set of Protective Measures. Protective Measures are the specific steps an organization shall take to reduce its vulnerability or increase its ability to respond during a period of heightened alert. The authority to craft and implement Protective Measures rests with the Federal departments and agencies. It is recognized that departments and agencies may have several preplanned sets of responses to a particular Threat Condition to facilitate a rapid, appropriate, and tailored response. Department and agency heads are responsible for developing their own Protective Measures and other antiterrorism or self-protection and continuity plans, and resourcing, rehearsing, documenting, and maintaining these plans. Likewise, they retain the authority to respond, as necessary, to risks, threats, incidents, or events at facilities within the specific jurisdiction of their department or agency, and, as authorized by law, to direct agencies and industries to implement their own Protective Measures. They shall continue to be responsible for taking all appropriate proactive steps to reduce the vulnerability of their personnel and facilities to terrorist attack. Federal department and agency heads shall submit an annual written report to the President, through the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security, describing the steps they have taken to develop and implement appropriate Protective Measures for each Threat Condition. Governors, mayors, and the leaders of other organizations are encouraged to conduct a similar review of their organizations= Protective Measures.

The decision whether to publicly announce Threat Conditions shall be made on a case-by-case basis by the Attorney General in consultation with the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security. Every effort shall be made to share as much information regarding the threat as possible, consistent with the safety of the Nation. The Attorney General shall ensure, consistent with the safety of the Nation, that State and local government officials and law enforcement authorities are provided the most relevant and timely information. The Attorney General shall be responsible for identifying any other information developed in the threat assessment process that would be useful to State and local officials and others and conveying it to them as permitted consistent with the constraints of classification. The Attorney General shall establish a process and a system for conveying relevant information to Federal, State, and local government officials, law enforcement authorities, and the private sector expeditiously.

The Director of Central Intelligence and the Attorney General shall ensure that a continuous and timely flow of integrated threat assessments and reports is provided to the President, the Vice President, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security, and the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. Whenever possible and practicable, these integrated threat assessments and reports shall be reviewed and commented upon by the wider interagency community.

A decision on which Threat Condition to assign shall integrate a variety of considerations. This integration will rely on qualitative assessment, not quantitative calculation. Higher Threat Conditions indicate greater risk of a terrorist act, with risk including both probability and gravity. Despite best efforts, there can be no guarantee that, at any given Threat Condition, a terrorist attack will not occur. An initial and important factor is the quality of the threat information itself. The evaluation of this threat information shall include, but not be limited to, the following factors:

1. To what degree is the threat information credible?
2. To what degree is the threat information corroborated?
3. To what degree is the threat specific and/or imminent?
4. How grave are the potential consequences of the threat?

Threat Conditions and Associated Protective Measures

The world has changed since September 11, 2001. We remain a Nation at risk to terrorist attacks and will remain at risk for the foreseeable future. At all Threat Conditions, we must remain vigilant, prepared, and ready to deter terrorist attacks. The following Threat Conditions each represent an increasing risk of terrorist attacks. Beneath each Threat Condition are some suggested Protective Measures, recognizing that the heads of Federal departments and agencies are responsible for developing and implementing appropriate agency-specific Protective Measures:

1. Low Condition (Green). This condition is declared when there is a low risk of terrorist attacks. Federal departments and agencies should consider the following general measures in addition to the agency-specific Protective Measures they develop and implement:
   
   
   
   1. Refining and exercising as appropriate preplanned Protective Measures;
   
   
   2. Ensuring personnel receive proper training on the Homeland Security Advisory System and specific preplanned department or agency Protective Measures; and
   
   
   3. Institutionalizing a process to assure that all facilities and regulated sectors are regularly assessed for vulnerabilities to terrorist attacks, and all reasonable measures are taken to mitigate these vulnerabilities.
   
   
   
   
2. Guarded Condition (Blue). This condition is declared when there is a general risk of terrorist attacks. In addition to the Protective Measures taken in the previous Threat Condition, Federal departments and agencies should consider the following general measures in addition to the agency-specific Protective Measures that they will develop and implement:
   
   
   
   1. Checking communications with designated emergency response or command locations;
   
   
   2. Reviewing and updating emergency response procedures; and
   
   
   3. Providing the public with any information that would strengthen its ability to act appropriately.
   
   
   
   
3. Elevated Condition (Yellow). An Elevated Condition is declared when there is a significant risk of terrorist attacks. In addition to the Protective Measures taken in the previous Threat Conditions, Federal departments and agencies should consider the following general measures in addition to the Protective Measures that they will develop and implement:
   
   
   
   1. Increasing surveillance of critical locations;
   
   
   2. Coordinating emergency plans as appropriate with nearby jurisdictions;
   
   
   3. Assessing whether the precise characteristics of the threat require the further refinement of preplanned Protective Measures; and
   
   
   4. Implementing, as appropriate, contingency and emergency response plans.
   
   
   
   
4. High Condition (Orange). A High Condition is declared when there is a high risk of terrorist attacks. In addition to the Protective Measures taken in the previous Threat Conditions, Federal departments and agencies should consider the following general measures in addition to the agency-specific Protective Measures that they will develop and implement:
   
   
   
   1. Coordinating necessary security efforts with Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies or any National Guard or other appropriate armed forces organizations;
   
   
   2. Taking additional precautions at public events and possibly considering alternative venues or even cancellation;
   
   
   3. Preparing to execute contingency procedures, such as moving to an alternate site or dispersing their workforce; and
   
   
   4. Restricting threatened facility access to essential personnel only.
   
   
   
   


5. Severe Condition (Red). A Severe Condition reflects a severe risk of terrorist attacks. Under most circumstances, the Protective Measures for a Severe Condition are not intended to be sustained for substantial periods of time. In addition to the Protective Measures in the previous Threat Conditions, Federal departments and agencies also should consider the following general measures in addition to the agency-specific Protective Measures that they will develop and implement:
   
   
   
   1. Increasing or redirecting personnel to address critical emergency needs;
   
   
   2. Assigning emergency response personnel and pre-positioning and mobilizing specially trained teams or resources;
   
   
   3. Monitoring, redirecting, or constraining transportation systems; and
   
   
   4. Closing public and government facilities.
   
   
   
   

Comment and Review Periods

The Attorney General, in consultation and coordination with the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security, shall, for 45 days from the date of this directive, seek the views of government officials at all levels and of public interest groups and the private sector on the proposed Homeland Security Advisory System.

One hundred thirty-five days from the date of this directive the Attorney General, after consultation and coordination with the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security, and having considered the views received during the comment period, shall recommend to the President in writing proposed refinements to the Homeland Security Advisory System.

Related Links:

• U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• Center for Defense Information
• Gov. Ridge Announces Homeland Security Advisory System