7.2 Suspicious Activity, SALUTE & Information Protection

Delaware Security Guard Study Guide Exam

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1 Chapter 1: Delaware Licensing, Law & Regulations

1.1 Exam Identity, Regulator & Statutory Framework 1.2 Eligibility, Background Review & Continuing Duties 1.3 Training, Testing, Application, Cards & Renewal

2 Chapter 2: Ethics, Professional Standards & Diversity

2.1 Ethics, Integrity & Professional Conduct 2.2 Diversity, Bias & Culturally Competent Service

3 Chapter 3: Legal Authority, Detention & Search Boundaries

3.1 Current Arrest Limits, Police Assistance & Witness Role 3.2 Merchant Detention, Probable Cause & Reasonable Custody 3.3 Consent, Searches, Trespass & Unlawful Restraint

4 Chapter 4: Force, De-escalation & Defensive Equipment

4.1 Force for Self-Protection 4.2 Protection of Others & Property 4.3 De-escalation & Continuous Force Decisions 4.4 Firearms, Restraints & Other Defensive Equipment 4.5 Contact, Cover & Coordinated Safety

5 Chapter 5: Emergency, Medical, Fire & Disaster Response

5.1 Emergency Readiness, Notifications & Evacuation 5.2 Medical Response, CPR, AED & Choking 5.3 Fire Safety, Extinguishers & Bomb Threats 5.4 Natural Hazards, Hazardous Materials & Major Incidents

6 Chapter 6: Criminal & Special Incident Response

6.1 Crime Incidents, Police Handoff & Scene Protection 6.2 Welfare, Crisis, Disability & Public Accommodation Encounters 6.3 Public Conduct, Visible Weapons, Demonstrations & Recording

7 Chapter 7: Terrorism Awareness & Threat Reporting

7.1 Terrorism Awareness & the National Terrorism Advisory System 7.2 Suspicious Activity, SALUTE & Information Protection 7.3 Violent Intruder & Edged-Weapon Response

8 Chapter 8: Protection Operations & Asset Security

8.1 Fixed Posts, Access Control & Visitor Management 8.2 Patrol Planning, Observation & Incident Response 8.3 Layered Asset Protection & Loss Prevention

9 Chapter 9: Notes, Reports & Professional Communication

9.1 Field Notes, Logs & Source Integrity 9.2 Clear, Concise, Complete, Correct & Courteous Reports 9.3 Interpersonal, Radio & Public Communication

7.2 Suspicious Activity, SALUTE & Information Protection

Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI

SALUTE organizes Size, Activity, Location, Unit or identifying description, Time, and Equipment into a concise report.

Facts must be separated from assumptions, and urgent danger goes directly to 911 rather than waiting for a complete form.

Pre-incident concerns can include surveillance, probing, testing, elicitation, impersonation, tampering, or acquisition of access tools when context makes them unusual.

Guards preserve video, access records, original messages, notes, and physical scenes while protecting sensitive site information.

Last updated: September 2026

Recognize activity in context

Suspicious activity is conduct reasonably connected to crime, site vulnerability, or preparation—not a type of person. Potential pre-incident behaviors may include unusual surveillance of restricted operations, repeated probing of doors or response times, testing whether tailgating succeeds, eliciting nonpublic security information, impersonating a contractor, tampering with cameras, placing an unexplained device, stealing credentials, or acquiring restricted access tools. Each may also have an innocent explanation, so the guard reports facts and context rather than announcing guilt.

Consider normal operations. A licensed surveyor photographing public infrastructure with authorization differs from a person hiding a camera inside a restricted mechanical space. A vendor asking where to unload differs from someone repeatedly asking when guards leave and which cameras fail. The report should identify the behavior that created concern and any verification attempted.

SALUTE reporting

Delaware's official study material teaches SALUTE as an information framework:

• Element Report content Example
• S — Size Number of people, vehicles, objects Two people and one white van
• A — Activity What they are doing Testing three locked loading doors and photographing each keypad
• L — Location Exact current or last location and direction North dock, moving east toward Gate 2

U — Unit/identification Clothing, markings, names, plates, distinctive features Blue jacket, orange backpack, Delaware plate as observed

T — Time Start, observation, departure, report time Began 14:12; departed 14:18

E — Equipment Vehicles, bags, cameras, tools, weapons, devices Handheld camera and bolt cutters visible in open bag

“Unit” comes from the mnemonic's operational origins; in civilian security, use it for useful identification rather than guessing membership in an organization. Record exact words and objective movement. Avoid conclusions such as “Middle Eastern,” “crazy,” “terrorist,” or “definitely casing” when the actual fact is an accent, behavior, or repeated route.

Urgency and transmission

SALUTE improves organization but does not delay an emergency call. If there is a weapon, explicit threat, active tampering with a critical system, suspicious package, forced entry, violence, or immediate danger, call 911 with the key location and hazard first. Continue observing from safety and update direction or behavior. For a nonurgent concern, use the agency's supervisor, security operations center, property management, or law-enforcement liaison process.

Use plain language. Repeat plate characters and critical numbers, using an approved phonetic method if trained. State confidence and source: “I personally observed,” “camera 12 shows,” or “a named employee reported.” Correct an error immediately. Do not fill gaps with guesses.

Preserve information and evidence

Protect the original source. Bookmark or export video under policy before normal retention overwrites it; preserve access-event logs and visitor records; keep original emails or messages with metadata; secure handwritten notes; and prevent people from handling a suspicious area or object. Record who received each item. Do not enhance, crop, annotate, or circulate the only copy. Preserve a working copy and original according to policy.

Sensitive information also requires protection. Camera locations, alarm codes, employee schedules, executive movements, emergency plans, investigation details, and access credentials should go only to authorized recipients with a duty-related need. Confirm a caller's identity before disclosing. A person claiming to be police can be referred to the established agency contact or verified through dispatch.

Scenario

At 21:40, a guard sees two people at a closed warehouse. One holds a phone toward each camera while the other pulls three service-door handles. They leave in a dark sedan after noticing the patrol. A weak report says, “Two suspicious people casing the building.” A strong report gives size, actions, exact north-wall location, descriptions, time, vehicle and plate details, direction, camera references, and the fact that no entry was observed. That report permits immediate patrol coordination and later video review without claiming an unproven motive.

Shift handoff

Open observations must survive shift change. Tell the next guard what occurred, who was notified, evidence preserved, instructions received, and what remains pending. Enter the event in the official log without exposing it to unauthorized readers.

The quality test is: Could a person who was not present locate the event, recognize the subject, understand the conduct, assess urgency, and find the preserved evidence? SALUTE makes that result more likely.

When a subject leaves before contact, preserve direction and last-known time rather than merely writing “gone on arrival.” Those small details allow cameras, patrols, or police to continue the information chain and distinguish a current lead from stale information.