- If a public affairs officer, please complete OPSEC level II. Contact your OPSEC program manager for more information.
- Social media managers must complete Operations Security Awareness for Military Members, DoD Employees and Contractors
Official Social Media Use
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Official Use
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MANAGERS
U.S. Army social media managers are public affairs Soldiers, civilians or contractors in charge of managing an organization or leader's official social media presence, such as accounts on Facebook, YouTube, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram. Registered accounts that use federal government resources (including time, manpower and funds) to communicate the work of the Army are considered official.
Commanders may designate personnel as social media managers who do not requre release authority. However, a PAO must provide oversight and approve information prior to release.
If you are assigned the duties of a social media manager, you will be required to complete specific training requirements, and you will be expected to serve as the subject matter expert on social media policies, techniques and best practices. As part of your duties, you will actively engage the public, ensuring that you consider and promote unity of voice, freedom of information, timeliness and accuracy while maintaining security, and privacy.
Personnel managing Army social media platforms must:
- Be 1035 civilian, 46 series military occupational specialty or a contractor in support of such personnel
- Have release authority delegated by the commander, or have the oversight of a public affairs officer — contractors may not speak on behalf of the government, any publishing by contractor personnel must be approved by a PAO
- Complete required training:
- Public affairs officers — Must complete OPSEC level II. Contact your OPSEC program manager for more information.
- Social media managers — Must complete OPSEC Awareness for Military Members, DOD Employees and Contractors
Social media managers actively engage the public, ensuring that they consider and promote unity of voice, freedom of information, timeliness and accuracy while maintaining security and privacy.
ESTABLISHING AN OFFICIAL SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT
ARMY BRANDING GUIDELINES/ BRAND PORTAL
The Enterprise Army Brand is a strategic brand marketing initiative designed to assist the Army in developing a unified approach to all communications and messaging.
All brand-use guidelines will be hosted on the Army Brand Portal.
LIMITATIONS ON NEW ACCOUNTS
NEW ACCOUNTS
- Limit creating new accounts.
- New official accounts should only be established if the proposed new account meets a specific communications objective that is not being fulfilled by any other existing account or other PA activities.
- Before creating new accounts, consider if your communication needs can be met through collaboration with an existing account manager.
APPROVED PLATFORMS
Do not use, test or otherwise engage on new platforms for official use
Some social media and content management platforms currently approved for official use are:
- Facebook, including Messenger and Pages
- Flickr
- Hootsuite
- Sprinklr
- Tumblr
- X (Formerly Twitter)
- YouTube
A complete list of approved applications can be found in the DoD Application Vetting Environment (DAVE) — CAC enabled. This system is a database for mobile applications and approval requests.
New platforms must be reviewed by DISA. Do not create official accounts on social media platforms that have not been approved for use. Review the DAVE system if you are unsure whether a platform is approved for official use.
TikTok is not approved for official use.
REGISTERING AN OFFICIAL ACCOUNT
All accounts created and managed using federal government resources (including time, manpower and funds) to communicate the work of the Army must be registered.
DoDI 5400.17, section 4.1.b., directs official Army accounts to be registered on the Defense.gov registry and U.S. Digital Registry, AR 360-1, chapter 8, directs official Army accounts to be registered on the Army's Social Media Directory.
Brigade/garrison and higher are the only organizations authorized a PAO with release authority and understanding of OPSEC/SAPP/PII/HIPAA/Hatch Act review.
- Ensure you and your account meet the requirements for registering an official account.
- Once the account is submitted, the Digital Media Division at OCPA will review the submission to ensure it has all the elements required of an official social media account.
- Once the account is approved for inclusion, your official social media account will be added to the directory.
The Office of the Chief of Public Affairs Digital Media Division (DMD) conducts periodic audits of the Army Social Media Directory to ensure units are complying with applicable guidelines, SOPs, policies and regulations. Units are notified of violations found during the audits and may be removed from the directory if the violations are not corrected. The most recent posts on an account should be no older than one month, and the account should be updated on a weekly basis at minimum.
Verification
- Accounts must be registered with the U.S. Digital Registry in order to initiate the verification process. A “verified” personal account on a social media platform does not constitute an official DoD account
- EOPs registered with DoD do not need to display a “verified” status with the social media platform (e.g., a blue checkmark) to be recognized by DoD as an official account.
- Request verification through the respective DMD social media platform lead. The DMD representative will forward your verification request to the corresponding platform liaison for verification.
REQUIREMENTS FOR AN OFFICIAL ACCOUNT
Personnel managing or having access to an official social media account will coordinate with their local information technology offices and sign an acceptable use policy agreement with specific, mandatory language.
If the existing acceptable use policy agreement does not contain the required language, it should be amended or a separate statement containing the language should be signed.
AUP STATEMENT:
I will use official DoD social media accounts on non-DoD-controlled social media platforms (e.g., Facebook, YouTube, X, Instagram) only as authorized by my job or duty description and to conduct official business, including to release official agency information or other official communication. I will not use personal social media accounts to conduct official business except as authorized in accordance with DoDI 8170.01.Commanding officer or qualified public affairs officer approval to establish platform
Content that is released to the public on social media platforms requires review by a public affairs officer that has release authority from the commander.
Social media managers are not authorized to speak on behalf of the unit, the commander or the Army without the appropriate level of release authority. Public affairs officers will provie oversight for any posts social media managers draft.
Additionally, contractors may not speak on behalf of the government. Any publishing by contractor personnel must be approved by a PAO.
Social media managers are required to complete OPSEC training to avoid content on their unit's critical information list (CIL).
Content released to the public on social media platforms requires an OPSEC review.
Point of contact: Must list a valid .mil or .gov email address
The account must have a URL to an official U.S. Army website. Use your command's website or www.army.mil if your organization does not have a website.
An account must have a user terms of agreement statement listed on the social media platform that informs visitors of what is authorized when interacting on the platform. It must include:
- General disclaimer
- Privacy and security disclaimers
- Copyright and trademark disclaimers
- Moderated account disclaimer
- Freedom of Information Act notice
RESOURCES
- GSA's Negotiated Terms of Service
- DoD Social Media User Agreement
- U.S. Army Facebook's terms of use statement Example : “While this is an open forum, it's also family-friendly, so please keep your comments and wall posts clean. In addition to keeping it family-friendly, we ask that you follow our posting guidelines here. If you don't comply, your message will be removed: - Likes ≠ endorsement - We do not allow graphic, obscene, explicit, or racial comments or submissions, nor do we allow comments that are abusive, hateful, or intended to defame anyone or any organization. - We do not allow solicitations or advertisements. This includes promoting or endorsing any financial, commercial, or non-governmental agency. Similarly, we do not allow attempts to defame or defraud any financial, commercial, or non-governmental agency.- We do not allow comments that suggest or encourage illegal activity. - You participate at your own risk, taking personal responsibility for your comments, username, and any information provided. Any appearance of external links on this site does not constitute any official endorsement by the U.S. Army or the Department of Defense.”
In order for an organization to maintain an official social media account, the organization must clearly signal that the account is “official” somewhere on the page in accordance with DOD and U.S. Army policy. An example of the specific wording can be found in the left-hand column of the U.S. Army Facebook page or at the top of the U.S. Army X (formerly Twitter) account.
All official accounts must be open to the public. Private groups, accounts or feeds will NOT be registered on the Army Social Media Directory, the Defense.gov registry and U.S. Digital Registry.
In order for a Facebook account to operate in an official capacity, the account must be registered and labeled as a “government organization” account. The use of a Facebook profile, community or group page for official purposes would violate the government's terms of service agreement with Facebook.
Submit the social media account for registration and approval on the U.S. Army Social Media Directory. In addition to the Army Social Media Registry, all social media accounts must also be registered on the following directories:
Ensure your security settings are maximized and include two-step verification if available by the platform.
Ensure you maintain an SOP or continuity book to ensure the account seamlessly transitions to new personnel.
OPERATIONS GUIDANCE
All social media content posted to official accounts is considered an official communication, and therefore a federal record. Please see our section regarding operations to learn more about managing an official social media account for the U.S. Army. Included are guidelines, resources, tips and frequently asked questions.
Utilize best practices
Soldiers use social media every day. It is a part of their daily routine. It’s natural and important to them. Roughly three-quarters of Facebook users – and around half of Instagram users – visit these sites at least once a day.
For strategic communication resources visit:
Public Affairs Portal (CAC login required)
And for further social media insights, guidance and resources, please visit:
U.S. Army Social Media Best Practices (CAC login required)
SUPPORT
If you are experiencing difficulty with any of the following issues, here are some resources that may help.
REPORTING SCAMS
There are many different types of online fraud and cybercrimes. U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID) receives hundreds of reports a month from individuals who have fallen victim to a scam perpetrated by a person impersonating a U.S. Soldier online.
Learn how to report a suspected scam
REPORTING IMPOSTORS
Soldiers, especially leaders, are prime targets for identity thieves who will use images posted online to create fake accounts. It is good practice to search sites regularly for impostors. Impostor accounts are violations of terms of use agreements.
Report an imposter social media account
REPORTING MISCONDUCT
Misusing online communications (online bullying), sending harassing or intimidating communications and images, or other online misconduct may violate existing federal laws under the U.S. Code and may also be a violation of the UCMJ. Regulation 600-20 authorizes commanders to punish Soldiers who are in violation of its direction, making failure to adhere to the Army's rules for online behavior a punishable offense under the UCMJ. There are mechanisms for reporting online misconduct.
Learn how to report misconduct.
HAS YOUR OFFICIAL SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT BEEN HACKED?
First, contact the respective social media platform lead at the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs Digital Media Division. The DMD POC will contact the platform on your behalf.
See additional actions and safety guidance.