NY To Provide Support For Great Neck School In Cyber Attack

GREAT NECK — Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday directed the state’s divisions of human rights and homeland security to provide additional support for the community of the North Shore Hebrew Academy High School in Great Neck in the wake of an Anti-Semitic cyber attack.

Under the governor’ plans, the state’s human rights division will host a virtual forum for the school community and its Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services' Cyber Incident Response Team will be made available to assess the school's cybersecurity readiness.

The human rights division will coordinate with the school to conduct a virtual forum for the academy’s community to provide supportive resources as they address the impacts of this incident, according to Cuomo’s office. The event will be planned on a timeline set by the school, and will include an overview of the state's human rights law, resources and advice to help parents discuss the incident with their children, information about how the state responds to cyber crimes, and an overview of the legal protections against bias crimes, Cuomo’s office stated in a press release.

The Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services' Cyber Incident Response Team — created in 2017 — will make itself available to assess the North Shore Hebrew Academy's cybersecurity practices, helping prepare the school to better identify and prevent future attacks, according to Cuomo’s office. The CIRT's review will be conducted at the school's convenience and the team will work with law enforcement partners to ensure it does not interfere with the ongoing investigation, the governor stated in a press release.

In the cyber attack, which took place Monday, hackers posted images of swastikas and video of Nazi SS soldiers marching on the school's website and also leaked the personal information of students and teachers.

Cuomo described the cyber attack as “simply despicable,” saying the fact it came as the school community celebrated Hanukkah “makes it even more repulsive.” The state will continue to work with local and national level law enforcement to hold the perpetrators accountable, deploying resources to help the staff, parents, and students at the school in the aftermath of this “senseless act,” Cuomo said. "By deploying these resources, we are sending a message loud and clear that hate has no place in our state — online or in person — and that New York will always support and protect those targeted for crimes based on who they are or what they believe,” Cuomo said.

The Nassau County Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation continue to investigate.