EN ISO 22324:2025
(Main)Security and resilience - Emergency management - Guidelines for colour-coded alert (ISO 22324:2022)
Security and resilience - Emergency management - Guidelines for colour-coded alert (ISO 22324:2022)
This document gives guidance on the use of colour codes to inform people at risk as well as first response personnel about danger and to express the severity of a situation.
This document is applicable to all types of hazard in any location.
This document does not apply to the method for displaying colour codes, detailed ergonomic considerations related to viewing displays or safety signs covered by ISO 3864-1.
Sicherheit und Schutz des Gemeinwesens - Gefahrenabwehr - Farbkodierungen zur Warnung der Bevölkerung (ISO 22324:2022)
Sécurité et résilience - Gestion des situations d'urgence - Lignes directrices relatives aux alertes par code couleur (ISO 22324:2022)
Varnost in vzdržljivost - Upravljanje v izrednih razmerah - Smernice za barvno kodirano opozarjanje (ISO 22324:2022)
General Information
Standards Content (Sample)
SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-marec-2025
Varnost in vzdržljivost - Upravljanje v izrednih razmerah - Smernice za barvno
kodirano opozarjanje (ISO 22324:2022)
Security and resilience - Emergency management - Guidelines for colour-coded alert
(ISO 22324:2022)
Sicherheit und Schutz des Gemeinwesens - Gefahrenabwehr - Farbkodierungen zur
Warnung der Bevölkerung (ISO 22324:2022)
Sécurité et résilience - Gestion des situations d'urgence - Lignes directrices relatives aux
alertes par code couleur (ISO 22324:2022)
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: prEN ISO 22324
ICS:
01.070 Barvno kodiranje Colour coding
03.100.01 Organizacija in vodenje Company organization and
podjetja na splošno management in general
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.
INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 22324
Second edition
2022-12
Security and resilience – Emergency
management – Guidelines for colour-
coded alert
Sécurité et résilience – Gestion des situations d'urgence – Lignes
directrices relatives aux alertes par code couleur
Reference number
ISO 22324:2022(E)
ISO 22324:2022(E)
© ISO 2022
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Published in Switzerland
ii
ISO 22324:2022(E)
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Guidance for use of colour codes . 1
4.1 General . 1
4.2 Colour codes to express the status of hazard . 1
4.2.1 General . 1
4.2.2 Typical colours for colour-coding system . 2
4.2.3 Order and position for the red, yellow and green spectrum . 2
4.3 Colour codes to give supplementary information . 3
4.3.1 General . 3
4.3.2 Black and purple . 3
4.3.3 Blue . 4
4.3.4 Grey . 4
4.4 Consideration for human factors and colour blindness . 4
4.4.1 General . 4
4.4.2 Colour names . 4
4.4.3 Text colours . 4
Annex A (informative) Examples on the use of colour codes in practice .6
Annex B (informative) Recommendations for colour selection . 9
Bibliography .11
iii
ISO 22324:2022(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
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expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO’s adherence to
the World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see
www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 292, Security and resilience.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO 22324:2015), of which it constitutes a
minor revision.
The changes are as follows:
— the title has been updated;
— references to guidance in other relevant standards have been added;
— the Bibliography has been updated.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.
iv
ISO 22324:2022(E)
Introduction
People can be faced in their daily lives with various kinds of risks. People at risk should be able to take
appropriate safety actions when faced with hazards even if they do not have a full understanding of
them.
Public warnings, through a combination of prior notifications and alerts, enable people at risk to take
appropriate and timely actions to protect their safety. ISO 22322 provides further guidance on public
warning.
Colour-coded alerts are used to notify people at risk of status changes on a safety or danger continuum
in allowing them to take appropriate actions.
This document will lead to better understanding of colour-coded alerts by reducing confusion and
prompting more appropriate responses in an emergency situation.
v
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 22324:2022(E)
Security and resilience – Emergency management –
Guidelines for colour-coded alert
1 Scope
This document gives guidance on the use of colour codes to inform people at risk as well as first
response personnel about danger and to express the severity of a situation.
This document is applicable to all types of hazard in any location.
This document does not apply to the method for displaying colour codes, detailed ergonomic
considerations related to viewing displays or safety signs covered by ISO 3864-1.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 22300, Security and resilience — Vocabulary
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO 22300 apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
4 Guidance for use of colour codes
4.1 General
Red, yellow and green (and the spectrum in between in terms of hue) should be used to express the
status of a hazard. Black, purple, blue and grey should be used to give supplementary information about
the hazard. ISO 22322 provides further guidance on public warning.
4.2 Colour codes to express the status of hazard
4.2.1 General
The colour codes to express the status of hazard are as follows:
— Red is associated with danger and should be used to notify people at risk to take appropriate safety
actions immediately.
— Yellow is associated with caution and should be used to notify people at risk to prepare to take
appropriate safety actions.
— Green is associated with a safe status and should be used to notify people at risk that no action is
required.
ISO 22324:2022(E)
This document does not define danger, caution or safety other than the suggested meaning given in
Table 1.
Experts should classify the status of hazard into danger, caution or safe.
Table 1 — Colour codes
Colour Associated meaning Proposed action
Red Danger Take appropriate safety action immediately
Yellow Caution Prepare to take appropriate safety action
Green Safe No action required
4.2.2 Typical colours for colour-coding system
If more than three colours are needed to express the level of hazard, the colours and supporting
information should be based on the following:
— the number of the level of hazard should be minimized in order to limit the number of colours being
used;
— hues between the red and green spectrum should be chosen;
— no more than seven colours should be used to avoid confusion;
— supporting information, which is understandable by users, should be added, including:
— supplemental information (e.g. text, numbers, shape, symbol, size);
— positional coding.
Figure 1 illustrates the different colours which can be used in colour-coding systems.
The colours in Figure 1 are indicative and should not be used for colour matching.
Annex B gives recommendations on colour specifications based on Munsell, CMYK and RGB systems.
Figure 1 — Guideline for use of basic colours
4.2.3 Order and position for the red, yellow and green spectrum
The order of colours can provide positional cues so that people can easily recognize the meaning of the
alert.
ISO 22324:2022(E)
There are several ways to show and use the spectrum of red, yellow and green (see Figure 2). However,
these colours should always be placed in a certain order where the increasing level of hazard is
presented:
— from left to right, or
— from bottom to top.
Figure 2 — Example of the order and position of colour-coding
4.3 Colour codes to give supplementary information
4.3.1 General
In addition to the red, yellow, green spectrum, the colours black, purple, blue and grey may be used to
provide additional information, see Table 2.
Annex B gives recommendations on colour specifications based on Munsell, CMYK and RGB systems.
Applications using colour codes consistent with this document are demonstrated in Annex A.
Table 2 — Supplementary colour codes
Colour Associated meaning Additional information
Black Fatal danger
...
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