# Social Media Cautions U.S. Department of Homeland Security to Issue Terror Warnings via Twitter By Carly Foy | Published 2011-04-13 | World Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/terror-warnings References: [mashable](http://mashable.com/2011/04/07/terror-twitter/) & [hosted2.ap.org](http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-04-07-US-Color-Coded-Threats/id-39f00f2285e6404882c0adc4b28e6190) The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has decided to utilize social media in an effort to spread word on terror warnings. The terror warnings have been revised, previously a five tier system, now has been minimized to two: elevated and imminent. The government will then issue the warnings via Facebook and Twitter starting on April 27th, 2011. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will only issue these messages "when appropriate," they claim. Naturally, the hierarchy of notification has not changed, as federal, state and local officials will be notified before the terror warnings are broadcasted via social media. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has added a new level of understanding of how the population now relies on social media to get their news, making this terror warning system either genius or unnecessary. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 1.8/10 - Popularity: 14% | Activity: 33% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Gen Z, Millennial - Top markets: North America, Europe ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [World](https://www.trendhunter.com/world) > [World News](https://www.trendhunter.com/worldnews) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Utilizing Social Media:** Opportunity for businesses to leverage social media platforms for communication and spreading important messages. - **Revised Terror Warning System:** Potential for disruptive innovation in creating more effective and efficient methods of issuing terror warnings. - **Reliance on Social Media for News:** Opportunity to develop innovative methods to deliver news and information to the population through social media channels. ### Who This Affects Most - **Communications and Social Media:** Opportunity for social media platforms and communication companies to collaborate with government agencies to improve emergency communication methods. - **Security and Emergency Management:** Potential for companies in the security and emergency management industry to develop new technologies and systems for issuing terror warnings and ensuring public safety. - **News and Media:** Opportunity for news organizations and media companies to adapt their delivery methods to cater to the population's reliance on social media for news updates. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Safety-Oriented Social Tools](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/instagram-10.md) - [Social Media Tipping Features](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/social-media-tipping-features.md) - [Private Social Media Features](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/twitter-circle.md) - [Teen-Protecting Social Media Features](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/instagram-limit-restrict.md) - [Social Media Political-Content Limitations](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/political-content-limit.md) - [Dedicated Social Media Devices](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/twitter-3d-gadget.md) - [Real-Time Fire Alerts](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/watch-duty.md) - [Limited Political Social Medias](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/threads-political-content.md) - [Home Safety Campaigns](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-selfie-effect.md)