Faith-Based Daily Awareness Post 18 June 2024

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.

West Boca Raton man threatened mass shooting at synagogue, arrest report says

According to Morris’ arrest report, a Palm Beach County deputy responded to the suspect’s home on Vineyard Court after one of Morris’ friends called 911 and said Morris had posted threatening messages on Instagram and Discord. When the deputy arrived, he spoke to another man, Morris’ roommate, who also said he was “made aware of threatening posts” by Morris. That roommate then showed the deputy the posts, all of which were antisemitic in nature, the sheriff’s office said. In at least one post, Morris threatened to carry out a mass shooting at a synagogue, without naming a particular one. According to Morris’ arrest report, the roommate said “he has known Morris to suffer from mental health issues; however, he was concerned as he has never made any statements to commit violence like this before.”

Analyst Comments:

Social media can provide threat indicators. It is critical that the public report troubling posts to law enforcement. FB-ISOA’s 26 September 2023 Daily Awareness Post (DAP) highlighted an incident where a concerned citizen reported suspicious activity to the authorities. Law enforcement coordination across multiple jurisdictions, and robust house of worship security prevented a tragedy from occurring.

The U.S. Violent Extremist Mobilization Indicators 2021 is a 34-page booklet produced by the Office of the Director of National Security (DNI), FBI, and DHS. The guide provides 43 indicators that US-based violent extremists are preparing an attack. The indicators are broken down by groups that may observe the indicators.

• Family Members and Peers
• Social Media Users
• Community Authority Figures and Members
  • Including religious leaders
• Commercial Sector Representatives
• Financial Sector Representatives

There is also a one-page US Violent Extremist desk reference.

The DAP provided additional resources.

Weekly Security Sprint EP 69. Summer Scams & CISA is BIG TIME! Terror Alarms, NTAS Bulletins and FUD! Living on the Edge! Hurricane Season!

The Gate 15 Security Sprint is a weekly rundown of the week’s notable all-hazards security news, risks and threats and some of the key focus areas for organizations to consider behind the headlines. Gate 15 team members discuss physical security, cybersecurity, natural hazards, health threats and other issues across our environment.

On this week’s Security Sprint, Jen and Andy discuss:

• Summer Scams & CISA is BIG TIME!
• Terror Alarms, NTAS Bulletins and FUD!
• Vulnerability Management: Living on the Edge!
• Hurricane Season!
• AI/Preparedness/Resilience

The above Gate 15 Weekly Security Sprint website also provides links to many security-related items of interest including:

• Join the new Gate 15 Resilience and Intelligence Portal – the GRIP! and get their daily report, the SUN, TARGET reports, their ransomware digest, partner reports, and more! Join the GRIP!
• TLP:CLEAR | FB-ISAO Newsletter
• America’s rural hospitals keep getting attacked by cybercriminals. Microsoft and Google are working to fix that

Information on other Gate 15 podcasts can be found at Podcasts (gate15.global).