The Jewish Federation of Ocean County (JFOC) announced today that it has partnered with more than 30 other Jewish Federations and the Secure Community Network (SCN), the official safety and security organization for the Jewish community in North America, to launch a new, standardized online form for the public to report threats, incidents, and suspicious activity related to Jewish organizations, facilities, or community members. The form is available on the Federation’s website at jewishoceancounty.org/IncidentReporting.
“Many in our community are concerned about rising antisemitism and hateful incidents. This new online reporting form is one of the ways we can protect the Jewish community,” said Federation Managing Director, Keith Krivitzky. “Together with the Secure Community Network, we urge everyone to report anything suspicious or concerning so the appropriate action can be taken.”
Information reported through the form is sent immediately to the Federation’s security professionals and the 24-hour Duty Desk in SCN’s National Jewish Security Operations Command Center, where a team of intelligence analysts uses intelligence and information-sharing best practices to determine what people or facilities may be at risk, as well as what next steps to take. Credible threats are referred to local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies and Jewish facility leaders as needed.
“This is the first nationally standardized incident reporting effort that ties together local Federation security initiatives and SCN as a national partner, ensuring that wherever someone is, there can be timely, consistent, and accurate reporting of threats, incidents, and suspicious activity,” said SCN National Director and CEO Michael Masters. “This is critical to keeping the Jewish community safe. In a world where threats travel at the speed of social media, this effort enhances our ability to identify trends and incidents across communities and work with security professionals and law enforcement to address them. Through a coordinated, best practice approach to information sharing, this initiative will help us more effectively and efficiently address threats and issues before they turn to action.”
The new form can be used to report in-person assaults or threats; suspicious persons or activity; property damage or vandalism; threatening or suspicious phone calls, text messages, or social media; suspicious packages or letters; spam and phishing emails; antisemitic or threatening flyers; or other similar incidents of concern to the Jewish community. Reports may be made anonymously.
The effort will also allow SCN to better aggregate and collect information, providing more comprehensive and reliable data to partners in the Jewish community and in law enforcement. This is especially important given the announcement hat 1 in 3 law enforcement agencies in the United States – representing up to half of the Jewish community – did not report hate crimes data to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for 2021.
The system was developed after careful analysis of the threat environment and a recognized need to ensure consistent, best practice incident reporting across the community, in line with national standards. The form was developed with input from key information-sharing, law enforcement, and public safety partners, as well as those in the nonprofit, academic, and private sectors. The form is designed to be compliant with federal reporting guidelines and constitutional requirements.
In an emergency, always call 9-1-1 first. If online reporting is not practical, follow established protocols to report suspicious activity – to include contacting local law enforcement and/or the relevant suspicious activity reporting authority – and contact the SCN Duty Desk at [email protected] or by calling 844-SCN-DESK.