It is presented to employees of State, USAID and Marine guards assigned to diplomatic and consular facilities in recognition of acts of courage or outstanding performance under unusually difficult or dangerous circumstances, whether or not in connection with the performance of assigned duties.

[1] The award consists of a silver medal set and a certificate signed by an assistant secretary, an official of equivalent rank or the Chief of Mission.

The ribbon reflects this; the designs are almost identical, but the color scheme indicates the precious metal issued with the respective awards.

Upon authorization, members of the U.S. military may wear the medal and ribbon in the appropriate order of precedence as a U.S. non-military personal decoration.

Secretary Clinton pins Award for Heroism on Principal Officer Lynne Tracy• Diplomatic Security Contractors who responded to a coordinated attack on Camp Sullivan in December 2016, protected a 150 foot gap in the perimeter of the US Embassy Support Center and rescued American's trapped in one of many collapsed buildings.