FBI memo suggests swatting incidents targeting Jewish institutions are linked

A spree of swatting incidents at nearly 200 Jewish synagogues and schools last week is believed to be a connected effort by foreign actors, according to a confidential FBI memo.

“Swatting,” named for the elite police groups specializing in high-risk operations, is when an individual or group of people make a misleading or false report to emergency services in an attempt to draw numerous armed authorities to a specific place.

The memo, obtained by ABC News and reportedly sent to partner law enforcement agencies, said more than 30 of the FBI’s 56 field offices are working to investigate the string of false reports.

“At this time, based on similar language and specific email tradecraft used, it appears the perpetrators of these threats are connected,” Assistant FBI Director Cathy Milhoan wrote in the memo. “Additionally, these threats appear to be originating from outside of the United States.”

None of the reports, which mostly consisted of bomb threats, were founded, she said. 

The nonprofit Secure Community Network (SCN) tracked 199 threats to Jewish institutions on Friday and Saturday across the country. Nearly three-quarters of the reports were in California and Arizona.

“The alarming volume of swatting incidents and false bomb threats being carried out across the country is a major concern for the safety and security of the Jewish community in North America, as well as law enforcement,” SCN CEO Michael Masters said in a statement Saturday.

“It’s critical to recognize that these are not victimless crimes or innocent pranks: They can have real — and even deadly — consequences,” he added.

Harassment and attacks targeted at Jewish and Muslim people have both increased significantly since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October. 

In the wake of the conflict, dozens of synagogues were targeted by “online trolls” hoping to disrupt services, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

Hate crimes in the U.S. have increased by 60 percent since October, FBI Director Christopher Wray told the Senate Judiciary Committee during a testimony early this month.

“And that’s on top of that already escalating increase that I mentioned,” he said, after noting hate crimes reached a high in 2022.

The FBI director said “the biggest chunk of those are threats against the Jewish community, but there are of course attacks … against others as well,” pointing to attacks against Muslim targets.