text: Chapter 3
  Preparation and Execution
  PREPARATION
  3-1. During preparation, planners take every opportunity to refine the deception plan based on updated
  intelligence and friendly information. Deception plans are not static and are continually adjusted. As
  assumptions prove valid or invalid, staffs confirm enemy perceptions, or the status of friendly units change,
  the MDO adjusts the deception for the commander or recommends aborting it if the deception can no longer
  significantly influence the situation and achieve the deception goal. As part of the plan, OPSEC activities
  also continue during preparation for the deception. OPSEC is a dynamic effort that anticipates and reacts to
  enemy collection efforts.
  3-2. MDOs coordinate the deception plan with every other aspect of the OPLAN. This coordination still
  occurs with those only who have a need to know. The complexity of deception, its secrecy, and its many
  witting and unwitting links within the staff and across operational forces requires careful coordination of the
  deception plan with overall planning. Coordination also occurs with specific staff entities. Close coordination
  with operations and intelligence planners is driven by the essential nature of their contribution to the
  deception planning process, but most other elements of the staff have a less direct relationship.
  3-3. During deception planning, OPSEC is a necessary condition and a critical planning requirement. The
  planning process itself must be secure, with no inadvertent disclosures due to carelessness in staff work or
  coordination. At the same time, planning must ensure that security is built into and maintained throughout
  the deception operation. This security reduces the risk of compromise and protects activities and units
  involved in the deception, particularly unwitting participants.
  EXECUTION
  3-4. The deception plan forms the basis for execution, but execution may occur in conditions more dynamic
  than anticipated. Consequently, the deception plan is subject to continual reassessment and refinement. By
  its nature, little flexibility exists in the concept of operations for deception. Successful monitoring involves
  knowing precisely when to take the next step in conveying the deception story. MDOs often identify specific
  operational feedback events identified in the plan to provide these cues. IO officers are critical in assessing
  and deciding the timing, frequency, and means through which an observable is transmitted to achieve the
  desired cognitive effect on the deception target.
  DECEPTION EXECUTION
  3-5. Deception execution includes the following activities:
  * Adjust the deception plan as necessary for changed conditions.
  * Sustain deception synchronization with an approved COA and OPSEC plan.
  * Sustain internal deception synchronization between the planning team and commander.
  * Sustain intelligence collection during deception execution.
  * Monitor, assess, and mitigate risk.
  * Keep the commander informed.
  * Maintain strict security and access controls throughout.