DEFCON on the Korean Peninsula
The Combined Forces Command keeps the peninsula at DEFCON 4 permanently, because the Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. DEFCON 3 cancels all leave and shifts operational control to the combined command; it was declared in 1976 (the axe murder incident at Panmunjom) and 1983 (the Rangoon bombing). DEFCON 2 means war is imminent, 1 means war. The US-wide DEFCON level is a separate thing and is rarely public.
WATCHCON
The intelligence watch condition. 4 is normal, 3 is raised when provocation indicators appear, 2 around nuclear tests and missile launches. It changes how many reconnaissance aircraft and satellites are tasked, which is why the "recon aircraft" tile on the live board usually moves first.
Jindotgae
A South Korean Army local alert for infiltration or localized provocation, named after the Jindo dog breed. Jindotgae 3 is normal, 2 is raised on signs of infiltration, 1 is the top level with full deployment of operational units. It applies to a specific corps or division area, not the whole country, and was issued in border counties during the 2010 Yeonpyeong shelling and the 2015 landmine incident.
How this site's level relates
The Korea Threat Index (KTI) is not any of the above. It is an estimate, recomputed hourly from public sources, of how tense the situation is before an official alert is issued. When an official alert is reported in the news, it appears in the "official alerts detected" row on the live board, next to the KTI.
If you are in Korea when a level changes
- Jindotgae: expect checkpoints and night-time movement limits in the affected area; follow instructions.
- DEFCON 3: enable Korean emergency SMS alerts on your phone, locate the nearest shelter on the national disaster portal (safekorea.go.kr), register with your embassy.
- Air-raid siren: go underground immediately; subway stations are designated shelters.