Please Be Aware

Congratulations to four of our local Jewish organizations for being awarded the federal Non-Profit Security Grant, with a total of $567k in funds dedicated to physical security enhancements. Since 2020, the Jewish Federation has helped secure close to $9M in federal and state security grants for over 30 of our organizations. We also work very closely with our faith-based partners and vulnerable non-profits to secure these grants, see below article for more.

The FBI warned that Iran-based cyber actors continue to exploit US and foreign organizations, targeting sectors across the US to include education, finance, healthcare, local government agencies and defense. Outside of the US, affected countries include Israel, Azerbaijan, and UAE. See Joint Cybersecurity Advisory Report for more information here.

Investigation continues to progress positively into the threatening targeted antisemitic graffiti at Chabad of Squirrel Hill, Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh and two Squirrel Hill residences. Please know that there are no known threats of violence at this time related to this.

Year to date 2024, the Jewish Federation has logged 198 incidents in our Virtual Command Center. This compares to 183 year to date 2023. We remain in a heightened threat environment and are working closely with law enforcement to monitor potential threat activity. Please continue to report any suspicious incidents via the Incident Report Form.

Security Matters in the News This Week

• Religious leaders swap stories, talk grant funding during house of worship security forum (TribLIVE.com)
• Hillel, SCN launch program fortify campus security for Jewish students (jpost.com)
• Jewish security organizations combine forces (NBC Chicago)
• Tree of Life survivor’s visit serves as call to action (clevelandjewishnews.com)

BluePoint Status

This week we will be working on the installation of BluePoint at JFCS and Weinberg Terrace locations.

Please review your current contact lists in BluePoint. If changes are needed, please contact Erin Fagan at efagan@jfedpgh.org.

Our BluePoint training video and refresher video are available on YouTube. These are useful for new staff or as a reminder for existing staff.

Security Resources and/or Training

Guardian Training

Please contact Erin Fagan at efagan@jfedpgh.org or 412-992-5252 to schedule this training.

Situational Awareness, Active Threat, and De-Escalation Training

If you or your organization have not yet had these training modules, please contact Erin Fagan at efagan@jfedpgh.org or 412-992-5252. All can be made available in person or via Zoom.

Request Training for Your Organization →

If you need Go Bags, Emergency Safety Procedures Flip Charts or medical supplies contact Erin Fagan at efagan@jfedpgh.org or 412-992-5252.