Faith-Based Daily Awareness Post 3 March 2025

These updates are shared to help raise the situational awareness of Faith-Based organizations to best defend against and mitigate the impacts from all-hazards threats including physical security, cybersecurity, and natural disasters. 

Exclusive: US intel shows Russia and China are attempting to recruit disgruntled federal employees, sources say. 

Foreign intelligence agencies, particularly from Russia and China, have been targeting U.S. federal employees, especially those with security clearances who have recently been fired or are at risk of termination. These agencies are exploiting vulnerabilities created by the Trump administration’s plan for mass layoffs within the federal workforce. The intelligence suggest that foreign adversaries see disgruntled or financially vulnerable workers as prime candidates for recruitment, aiming to gain access to sensitive information about U.S. infrastructure and government operations. 

At least two countries have set up recruitment platforms and are actively approaching federal employees on social media networks like LinkedIn, TikTok, Red Note, and Redditt. Foreign intelligence officers have been instructed to post jobs ads on LinkedIn, targeting federal employees who indicated they are “open to work.”  

Analyst Comments: The mass layoffs in the U.S. federal workforce, especially among those with high-level security clearances, could create serious vulnerabilities. The use of social media platforms to identify potential recruits showcases the evolution of intelligence-gathering tactics. Foreign intelligence agencies are taking advantage of these digital platforms to pinpoint and exploit individuals at their most vulnerable, marking a shift from traditional methods to tech-driven strategies. Houses of worship are likely places that federal employees may turn to during difficult periods in their life, and leaders within the community are well-positioned to help them understand this new threat. 

• Social Media Safety 
• Social Media: how to secure your accounts 

One dead after car drives into crowd in German city of Mannheim 

 In Mannheim, Germany, a car drove into a crowd on March 3, 2025, killing at least one person and injuring several others. The incident occurred amid carnival celebrations, with reports of two fatalities and 25 injuries. The car’s driver was arrested, though it’s unclear whether the attack was intentional or related to the carnival. Police are investigating the incident, and the city center has been cleared for safety. This attack follows a series of security concerns in Germany, including previous car ramming incidents. Authorities had been on high alert due to threats targeting carnival events. 

Analyst Comments: Vehicle ramming attacks have emerged as a troubling tactic in recent years, as they are hard to stop with conventional security measures. This poses challenges for security forced in adapting to this evolving threat. It is important to be vigilant around public events and have crowd management strategies. 

 Upcoming Hearings of Interests to the Community: 

• Chairman Pfluger Announces Legislation, Hearing to Tackle Terror Threats Caused by Online Radicalization. Tuesday, March 4, 2025, at 2:00 PM ET, the Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence will hold a hearing entitled “The Digital Battlefield: How Terrorists Use the Internet and Online Networks for Recruitment and Radicalization.” Witnesses will be announced here.  
• Never To Be Silent: Stemming the Tide of Antisemitism in America, 03/05/25 at 10:15am (FB-ISAO) 
• U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. 2025 Annual Report: Key Findings and Recommendations. March 25, 2025, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm ET, Register Here. 

Monthly Education: Standing up Security Teams  

• Date: 05 March 2025 
• Time: 12pm ET 

Protecting houses of worship is a unique undertaking due to the particulars of the environment and the community being served. Bearing in mind that the very nature of the threat environment is always dynamic and a team’s flexibility to work with those dynamics will be paramount to its success. While developing a team, it is important to remember that training that should focus on the original vision. Members of the team should have corresponding skills that meet the unique circumstances for each house of worship. And while it is beneficial to leverage the existing skill set of the members of the team, it is equally important to avoid making assumptions about the applicability of their prior training. 

• The threat environment is not static and therefore the training should not be static. 
• Prior to beginning any training, develop a Use of Force Policy and educate the team to follow it. Training should reflect the culture of the facility. 
• Engage with the right trainers and training resources that best suit your Use of Force Policy and culture. 
• Training should encompass critical soft skills and critical hard skills. Soft skills are not likely change across the organization however hard skills may change based on the house of worship’s Use of Force Policy. 
• Training should focus on developing the skills and mindset to be able to protect the lives of the members of the house of worship. Training on the basics while keeping in mind that mastery of a skill is doing the basic in a flawless manner. 
• Consider getting the basic training components drilled into the operational team members and anticipate that the complex will follow. 
• Reinforce and impress the necessary and desired aptitude and mindset. 

More information can be found here.