Combat Deployment Resume OPSEC: Sanitize Without Losing Impact

You came home from a deployment with stories you cannot tell. You ran missions you cannot name. You worked with units, allies, and assets that still operate today. Now you need a resume. And you are stuck.

This is the OPSEC trap. Some vets overshare. They name units, locations, and partner forces that should never sit on a public PDF. Other vets underspecify so hard the resume reads weak. Both versions miss interviews.

I am Brad Tachi, a Navy Diver. I lived the line between what could be said and what stayed in the team room. This guide gives you a clear way to write about combat deployments. No OPSEC violations. No security agreement breaches. We will cover what to redact, what is safe to keep, and three before and after bullet examples.

What is OPSEC and Why Does It Apply to Your Resume?

OPSEC stands for Operations Security. It is the DoD process for protecting unclassified details that an adversary could piece together into a real threat. The doctrine sits in DoD joint OPSEC publication NTTP 3-13.3. The Army's back-to-basics OPSEC guidance reinforces the same rules for the field.

Classified information is governed by Executive Order 13526. It defines three levels. Confidential. Secret. Top Secret. There is also Sensitive Compartmented Information and Special Access Programs that sit above those.

Your resume is a public document. It will sit in an ATS, get forwarded over email, and live on LinkedIn. Treat it like the side of a building. Anything you put on it is going out the door.

OPSEC violations on a resume can get flagged by a former security manager. Disclosing classified material can lead to penalties under 18 USC § 798. The good news is most vets are not at risk of that. The real risk is just looking sloppy and getting passed over.

What Should You Never Put on a Combat Resume?

Some details are off limits no matter how proud you are of the work. The rule is simple. If naming it could help an adversary or expose a person still in the field, redact it. Here is the short list.

• Classified unit nicknames or cover names: Some task forces, detachments, and special mission units have names you have heard a hundred times. They are still not for the resume. Use generic role labels like "special operations task force" or "joint task force."
• Specific tactics, techniques, and procedures: Do not write out breach methods, intercept sources, sensor placement, or any TTP that adversaries would pay to learn.
• Target identities and intel sources: No names, no aliases, no human source descriptions, no specific take from a single platform.
• Active FOB or COP names tied to current operations: If the base still runs missions tied to active work, leave the name off. Use the country or region instead.
• Rules of engagement specifics: ROE is sensitive. Describe outcomes, not the legal authorities you operated under.
• Partner-force unit names tied to active missions: Foreign partner units who still take risk in country do not need their names in a Google index. Use "host-nation partner force" or "allied unit."
• Signals or comm intercept details: Anything that touches collection sources or methods. This is the area that triggers 18 USC § 798. Stay far from it.

This list is not exhaustive. Your command's Critical Information List is the real source of truth. If you have one, pull it up before you write a single bullet.

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What Is Safe to Put on a Combat Resume?

Now the good news. Most of what makes you hireable is not classified. It is the scope and the outcomes. Civilian hiring managers do not need the unit name. They need the result.

Here is what stays safe and still lands the interview.

• Scope of responsibility: Number of people led, geography covered, equipment value, budget. "Led a 12-person team across three provinces" tells a hiring manager more than any unit name.
• Mission category at a high level: Counter-IED operations, route clearance, security force assistance, embassy security, vessel boarding, dive salvage. These are well known and not sensitive on their own.
• Unclassified outcomes: Equipment readiness rates, training delivered, partner units stood up, security incidents prevented, awards earned. Numbers without operational context are fine.
• Recognized commendations: Bronze Star, Combat Action Ribbon, Purple Heart, unit awards. These are part of your record and appear on the DD-214. You can list them.
• Country and theater names already declassified: Operation Iraqi Freedom. Operation Enduring Freedom. Operation Inherent Resolve. These are public.
• Skill sets and certifications: Combat lifesaver. Jumpmaster. Dive supervisor. EOD-qualified. These are training credentials, not operational details.

This is the bar. If your bullet uses scope, mission category, and outcome without naming protected details, you are clear. For more on translating the combat side specifically, see our combat veterans resume guide for infantry and special operations.

How Do You Run the Civilian Translation Filter?

Every bullet on a combat resume should pass two checks. We call this the civilian translation filter. It works for every branch and every job.

Check one. Would a recruiter outside the cleared community understand this bullet? If the answer is no, you have used too much military shorthand. Rewrite it in plain English.

Check two. Would my old security manager flag this bullet? If the answer is yes, redact the sensitive detail. Keep the scope and outcome.

A clean bullet passes both checks. It reads like business language. It does not name protected details. It still shows real impact.

Both checks have to pass. A bullet that is OPSEC-safe but reads like a SITREP is still broken. A bullet that is plain English but names a protected unit is also broken.

Three Before and After Bullet Examples

Theory is one thing. Bullets on paper are another. Here are three sanitized rewrites from real categories I see on vet resumes.

Example 1: Infantry Team Leader

Example 2: Intelligence Analyst

Example 3: Navy Diver Salvage Operations

Each sanitized version drops protected names and tools. Each one keeps scope, geography at a safe level, and outcome. A civilian recruiter can read these. A former SM would not flag them. That is the bar.

How Do You Talk About Awards Tied to Classified Operations?

This trips up a lot of vets. The award is on your DD-214. The citation is sometimes classified. So what goes on the resume?

Three rules.

1. List the award name: Bronze Star, Joint Service Commendation, Combat Action Ribbon. The name itself is not classified.
2. Skip the citation text: If your citation references a classified mission, do not paraphrase it. Just list the award.
3. Use the sanitized impact statement instead: Tie the award to a generic outcome. "Bronze Star for sustained performance during 12-month combat deployment in Iraq." That is enough.

For more on award placement, see how to list military awards on a civilian resume. For federal-specific rules, see the federal resume awards guide.

Should You Run Two Resume Versions for Cleared and Public?

Yes. If you have classified work, run two versions.

The public version goes on LinkedIn and on company sites that do not require a clearance. It uses sanitized language across every bullet. It is what we just covered.

The cleared version goes on sites like ClearanceJobs and to recruiters at cleared facilities. It can use slightly more detail because the audience already has a clearance. You can name programs by their unclassified short names. You can reference TS/SCI without explaining what that means. You still do not put classified material on it.

Both versions follow OPSEC. The cleared one just skips the civilian-translation layer. For a deeper read on the cleared side, see our guide on security clearance resume phrasing. Also see how to list TS, SCI, and Secret clearances.

What About Deployments You Cannot Even Confirm Happened?

Some vets supported missions that were never publicly acknowledged. The deployment is on your record, but the work is not on any official roster.

Here is how to handle it. List the dates. List the branch and your rate or MOS. Use generic location terms like "overseas duty" or "OCONUS deployment." Describe the unclassified skills you applied. Operational planning. Team leadership. Equipment readiness. Cross-functional coordination.

Do not invent a cover story. Do not lie about what unit you were with. Lying on a resume can get a clearance revoked and a federal hire pulled. Saying less is better than saying wrong.

If the work is non-attributable, your interview answers will follow the same pattern. "I supported a 12-month overseas mission. The specifics are not something I can discuss." A cleared hiring manager will read that signal and move on.

One more layer. Your LinkedIn profile has to match your resume. Recruiters check both before they call. If you scrubbed a detail from the resume, scrub it from LinkedIn too. The two documents should tell the same story. If a recruiter pushes for more, your answer is the same line you would give a hiring manager. "The specifics are not something I can discuss." Saying it twice is fine. Adding detail to fill the silence is how good vets get burned.

Two Final Habits Before You Hit Send

Two habits will save you from most OPSEC mistakes.

First, do a final scrub. Read each bullet out loud. Ask the two filter questions. Civilian-legible? OPSEC-clean? Anything that fails either check gets a rewrite.

Second, get a second set of eyes. A retired buddy who was in your community. A former command security manager. Even a current teammate during a coffee break. Five minutes of "would you put this on paper?" beats five years of regret.

If you want help running this scrub at scale, the BMR Military Resume Builder generates sanitized resume bullets from your military history. It is free for veterans and military spouses on the base plan. You paste a job posting, get a tailored resume, and edit any line that needs more redaction.

What to Do Next

Pull your record. Write your first pass with everything you remember. Then run the two-check filter on every bullet. Cut what fails. Rewrite for scope and outcome.

If you also have an employment gap between deployments or multiple back-to-back tours, see our deployment gaps playbook. The how to list deployments guide also has examples.

For federal applications, the rules tighten further. Federal HR reads your resume against OPM qualification standards. Your sanitized bullets still need to match the keywords in the announcement. Start with the DOL Veterans' Employment and Training Service resources for federal hiring paths.

Your combat experience is an asset. Most civilian leaders cannot lead a team of four through a parking lot at noon. You led one through gunfire in a country you did not pick. The work matters. The resume just has to honor what you cannot say while still showing what you can.