Cardiovascular diseases are currently the most common causes of morbimortality worldwide. In the context of disease prevention, actions creating favorable health environments and promoting healthy choices prove fundamental. Intervention programs with a community basis have been introduced in different countries since the beginning of the 1970s, aiming to modify cardiovascular risk factors and decrease morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascular diseases. In such experiences, the importance of public policies and cardiovascular risk vigilance systems needs to be stressed, permitting a more accurate assessment of the magnitude of the problem and the development of more cost-effective actions. The scope of this bibliographical study was to describe community-geared experiences in many countries in the campaign against cardiovascular diseases through health promotion and primary prevention of risk factors, as well as to identify in Brazil the vigilance actions of the risk factors of non-transmissible chronic diseases, stressing the strategic challenges facing the Family Health Program in tackling cardiovascular diseases.