Florida Schools Receive Threatening Extortion Email

Florida Schools Receive Threatening Extortion Email

Last Tuesday, college and university presidents across Florida received a 1,250-word extortion email threatening violence.

Last Tuesday, college and university presidents across Florida received a 1,250-word extortion email threatening violence. The email promised a deluge of false bombing and mass shooting threats unless the sender received a payment of 1.2 Bitcoin – about $18,000 at the current rate – by noon Wednesday.

The sender wrote that the repeated false threats of violence would disrupt campuses, and they would follow through with one of them at random.

"One of these threats will be legitimate. Which one will be a surprise," the email read. "You will be forced to evacuate the campus."

The email is written without referencing a specific campus. It’s not clear how many campuses received it, but it was sent to a wide variety, including Hillsborough Community College, the University of Florida and University of West Florida.

UF and other recipients alerted the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

"After they conferred, they basically determined that this is a scam," UF spokeswoman Janine Sikes said. "It does allow us to use it as a reminder that if people see something, they should say something."

Betsy Bowers, interim vice president of UWF's finance and administration department said student safety is her campus’s top priority.

"We have protocols in place that our faculty and staff are trained to do,” Bowers said. “Sheltering in place to make sure nobody is going across campus or giving access to people that could be of suspicion that would threaten or harm anyone on our campus space."

The FBI and other authorities continue to investigate the incident.

About the Author

Jessica Davis is the Associate Content Editor for 1105 Media.

Featured

  • Gaining a Competitive Edge

    Ask most companies about their future technology plans and the answers will most likely include AI. Then ask how they plan to deploy it, and that is where the responses may start to vary. Every company has unique surveillance requirements that are based on market focus, scale, scope, risk tolerance, geographic area and, of course, budget. Those factors all play a role in deciding how to configure a surveillance system, and how to effectively implement technologies like AI. Read Now

  • 6 Ways Security Awareness Training Empowers Human Risk Management

    Organizations are realizing that their greatest vulnerability often comes from within – their own people. Human error remains a significant factor in cybersecurity breaches, making it imperative for organizations to address human risk effectively. As a result, security awareness training (SAT) has emerged as a cornerstone in this endeavor because it offers a multifaceted approach to managing human risk. Read Now

  • The Stage is Set

    The security industry spans the entire globe, with manufacturers, developers and suppliers on every continent (well, almost—sorry, Antarctica). That means when regulations pop up in one area, they often have a ripple effect that impacts the entire supply chain. Recent data privacy regulations like GDPR in Europe and CPRA in California made waves when they first went into effect, forcing businesses to change the way they approach data collection and storage to continue operating in those markets. Even highly specific regulations like the U.S.’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) can have international reverberations – and this growing volume of legislation has continued to affect global supply chains in a variety of different ways. Read Now

  • Access Control Technology

    As we move swiftly toward the end of 2024, the security industry is looking at the trends in play, what might be on the horizon, and how they will impact business opportunities and projections. Read Now

Featured Cybersecurity

Webinars

New Products

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities 3

  • A8V MIND

    A8V MIND

    Hexagon’s Geosystems presents a portable version of its Accur8vision detection system. A rugged all-in-one solution, the A8V MIND (Mobile Intrusion Detection) is designed to provide flexible protection of critical outdoor infrastructure and objects. Hexagon’s Accur8vision is a volumetric detection system that employs LiDAR technology to safeguard entire areas. Whenever it detects movement in a specified zone, it automatically differentiates a threat from a nonthreat, and immediately notifies security staff if necessary. Person detection is carried out within a radius of 80 meters from this device. Connected remotely via a portable computer device, it enables remote surveillance and does not depend on security staff patrolling the area. 3

  • Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

    Connect ONE®

    Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation. 3