Threat Assessment
The threat level answers one question: how dangerous is this to people if it is left uncontained? It is not a measure of how strange, creepy or exciting a record is. A harmless mystery is Low, however unsettling the writing.
The five levels
| Level | Definition | Rule of thumb |
|---|---|---|
| LOW | No meaningful danger. | Nobody has been hurt, and nobody plausibly could be. The record is strange, not harmful. |
| GUARDED | Minor risk. Routine precautions. | A careless visitor could suffer a minor injury or scare. Avoid the location, follow basic rules. |
| ELEVATED | Significant risk. Credible incidents. | Injuries or serious harm have been documented. Access is restricted and personnel are briefed. |
| HIGH | Serious risk. Likely harm. | Anyone exposed is likely to be hurt. Containment is required and failures are reportable. |
| SEVERE | Grave, ongoing or imminent harm. | Assume casualties. Containment may be failing. This is the level that moves the site alert condition. |
Choosing a level
- Has anyone been harmed? If not, the record is probably Low or Guarded.
- Could an ordinary visitor be harmed? If so, Elevated or above.
- Is the harm ongoing or likely to repeat? If so, High or above.
- Is containment holding? If it is failing or unknown, rate Severe.
If you are torn between two levels, rate the higher one and explain why in your clearance reason. Reviewers can lower it, but they cannot guess what you were worried about.
Documented records
For a real, historical event, the threat level describes how consequential and harmful it was, not a claim that something dangerous is happening now. Most historical records sit at Low or Guarded unless the harm is ongoing. Never use a high rating to make an old story feel urgent.
Site condition
The alert condition shown on the home page (green, amber, red) follows the number of published Severe records unless command staff set it by hand. Rating a record Severe is a decision that changes the look of the whole site. Use it deliberately.
Examples in the archive
Records you are cleared to open, grouped by level.
- LOW ANOM-028 — Copper River Standing Hum
- GUARDED ANOM-046 — Lennon Dakota Shooting Theory
- ELEVATED ANOM-001 — The Stairwell Loop
- ELEVATED ANOM-024 — Far-Right Surge in Europe
- ELEVATED ANOM-029 — Grid Consolidation Through Silicon
- HIGH ANOM-049 — Contact In Hallway C
- HIGH ANOM-053 — Cleanup At Door Nine
- HIGH ANOM-054 — The Hand At The Lens
- SEVERE ANOM-050 — Twelve Rounds Into Nothing