Faith-Based Security Headlines
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.
Furry hackers spend stolen church funds on inflatable sea lions after pastor calls out Biden
The daily dot reports:
“SiegedSec, the hacking group allegedly compromised of “gay furries,” claims to have breached a U.S.-based church and used its funds to purchase at least 100 inflatable sea lions.
The hack—which also resulted in the leak of roughly 15,000 user accounts from the ministry’s website, including detailed prayer requests—was aimed at the River Valley Church in Burnsville, Minnesota. In a post on Telegram, SiegedSec said it targeted the church after receiving “a report via email of a church pastor” making anti-transgender remarks.
The post specifically cites the church’s lead pastor Rob Ketterling as “causing problems with transgender individuals, as well as publicly posting transphobia.”
Screenshots shared by SiegedSec show some of the prayer requests made by the church’s members, as well as a link to access the data. Another screenshot shows what appears to be the church’s Amazon account and 100 inflatable sea lions being sent to its Minnesota address by SiegedSec, totaling $999.00.”
Related X post:
SiegedSec on X: “SiegedSec recieved a report of transphobia within River Valley Church so we delivered justice~ We hacked their accounts and spent thousands of dollars on inflatable sea lions (we couldn’t donate it), and we have leaked 15k+ user data :3”
Additional Cyber Items:
- Jewish Community Security Briefing: What You Need to Know About Misinformation, Disinformation and Doxing
- 2024 State of Malware in Education report: Top 6 cyberthreats facing K-12 and Higher Ed
- Questions To Ask When Choosing A Church App or Giving Provider
Analyst Comments:
Faith-Based Organizations (FBO) should consider reviewing some of the resources below to prevent hacks and other cybersecurity issues.
CISA provides Cyber Essentials, which is a guide for leaders of small businesses as well as leaders of small and local government agencies to develop an actionable understanding of where to start implementing organizational cybersecurity practices. The guidance can also be used by FBOs.
CISA also provides the Cyber Essentials Toolkits, a set of modules designed to break down the CISA Cyber Essentials into bite-sized actions for IT and C-suite leadership to work toward full implementation of each Cyber Essential.
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center(IC3) provides resources to protect the public from all cyber crime and also receives complaints for further investigation.
As always, Faith-Based ISAO’s website provides resources in the Resource Library, including information on Protecting Digital Assets.
Strengthening Church Security: Enhancing Safety Measures for Congregations and Missionary Work
The Newswire article states that, “The first step in strengthening church security is to conduct a thorough assessment of potential risks and vulnerabilities.” The article then provides five steps to implement security measures and four steps to cultivate a culture of safety and support.
Analyst Comments:
Faith-Based Organizations should consider conducting a thorough risk and vulnerability assessment and then consider the Newswire and other available safety and security measures.
As always, Faith-Based ISAO’s website provides resources in the Resource Library, including information on Securing Facilities and People.
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More Security-focused Content
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