Faith-Based Daily Awareness Post 26 January 2026

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.

Germany arrests Lebanese suspect in Hamas plot targeting Jewish institutions

German authorities have arrested a Lebanese national in connection with an alleged Hamas plot to target Jewish and Israeli institutions in Europe, detaining him at Berlin’s Brandenburg Airport after he arrived from Beirut. Federal prosecutors say the suspect assisted in procuring ammunition in 2025 and was involved in planning attacks on Jewish and Israeli sites. German investigators linked him to other alleged Hamas operatives previously arrested during a weapons handover in Berlin, and authorities have separately detained additional suspected members of the group, including Lebanese nationals charged with involvement in acquiring and storing weapons for the organization. Germany, which banned Hamas activities after the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, continues to pursue cases against individuals suspected of ties to the designated terrorist group.

Analyst Comments: This case serves as a reminder that threats targeting Jewish and Israeli institutions in Europe remain an ongoing and persistent concern, even when specific plots are disrupted before execution. The arrest underscores how extremist organizations and affiliated individuals may continue to seek opportunities to conduct or support attacks across borders, often relying on logistical support networks rather than direct action alone. While authorities in this instance intervened early, the case illustrates the broader security environment in Europe, where law enforcement and intelligence agencies must maintain sustained vigilance around sensitive community and faith-based sites.

Top 200 Most Common Passwords: Generations change, password habits remain

The annual NordPass Top 200 Most Common Passwords report analyzes millions of exposed passwords from data breaches and dark-web repositories to show which passwords people use most often around the world. In the 2025 edition of the list, passwords like “123456” and “admin” still top the rankings, revealing that many users rely on extremely simple, easy-to-guess credentials that prioritize convenience over security. Other predictable patterns such as numeric sequences (“12345”), common words (“password”), and familiar keyboard paths (“qwerty”) remain widespread across all age groups and countries. The overarching trend is that poor password hygiene persists, leaving accounts highly vulnerable to cyberattacks, identity theft, and unauthorized access. NordPass underscores that strong, unique passwords combined with tools such as password managers and multi-factor authentication are essential defenses in today’s threat environment.

Analyst Comments: The persistence of weak passwords identified in the NordPass report highlights a systemic cybersecurity risk that extends well beyond individual users and directly affects community-based organizations, including faith-based institutions. Churches, synagogues, mosques, and other houses of worship rely on digital systems for donations, livestreaming, member communications, volunteer coordination, and record-keeping, many of which contain sensitive personal and financial information. When administrators or volunteers reuse simple passwords such as “123456” or “admin,” these systems become easy targets for credential-stuffing attacks, phishing campaigns, and account takeovers. Because many faith organizations operate with limited IT staff and rely on trust-based access models, a single compromised account can result in financial fraud, reputational harm, or misuse of a trusted platform to spread misinformation or malicious links to congregants. Strengthening password practices and adopting safeguards like multi-factor authentication can therefore be viewed not just as technical upgrades, but as an extension of stewardship and responsibility protecting the privacy, safety, and trust of the communities these institutions serve in an increasingly hostile digital threat environment.

Nerd Out EP 66. Terrorism trends and hacktivism in the current geopolitical environment, plus Nerd Movie review

The Gate 15 Nerd Out! Security Panel Discussion, moderated by Dave Pounder, focuses on physical security topics including terrorism, extremism, hostile events, and other pertinent topics.

In this week’s Nerd Out Dave and Alec talked about the following topics:

• Trends in Terrorism: Wha’s on the Horizon in 2026?
• Critical Infrastructure Attacks Became Routine for Hacktivists in 2025
• Severe Winter Weather Forecast to Impact Large Portions of the U.S.

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

Building an Intelligence Team for Your House of Worship

When: February 4, 2026, 12:00 PM ET. 

Register here.

This session is part of an FB-ISAO–led program, developed and delivered by our team to support faith-based organizations in building stronger threat awareness and intelligence capabilities.

The Mission and Purpose of an Intelligence Team and Program session will explore key questions such as:

• What is the local threat to my house of worship?
• Which threat actors or adversaries might support, plan, or carry out a malicious act in my area?

During the session, FB-ISAO panelists will discuss how broader contextual information—including global developments—can be used to better assess and understand local risks facing houses of worship. The discussion will focus on helping faith-based organizations determine:

• What information they need,
• Where to find that information, and
• How to process it in a meaningful, useful, and actionable way.

This session is open to the public, and we encourage participants to share it with peers and partners to help strengthen collective awareness and resilience across the faith-based community.