The ISIS threat touches close to home as Orland Park police have been contacted by the FBI regarding a U.S. airman whose name appears on an Islamic State “hit list” posted online.
Police Chief Tim McCarthy confirmed the FBI’s outreach for the Chicago Tribune Tuesday morning.
“Beyond that, and in the security interest of the service member and family, we are not confirming anything else about this matter or any security measures that may be taken,” McCarthy said.
A group calling itself the “Islamic State Hacking Division” boasted recently that its hackers had breached Defense Department databases to cull information about 100 U.S. military members. The hackers group said the information was posted online to encourage Muslims in the United States to attack and kill members of the military.
“We have decided to leak 100 addresses so that our brothers residing in America can deal with you,” the ISIS hackers wrote on a website.

Reports the Daily Beast:

As it turns out, the group didn’t need to hack the Pentagon. At least two-thirds of the troops on the ISIS “hit list” had been featured on public Defense Department websites designed to promote the military, The Daily Beast has learned.
Many service members were quoted or photographed in promotional stories talking about their work, often in the Middle East. Others were featured in news videos or in holiday messages to their families. Some were photographed after they returned home from long missions. Others were spokespeople or official photographers for the U.S. military. …

At least 60 of the troops listed were featured on the Defense Video & Imagery Distribution System (DVIDs), a website created shortly after the 9/11 attacks to promote the U.S. military’s defense efforts to the public. The site is updated daily with videos, photos, and news articles, all produced by Defense Department personnel. At least six other service members were quoted in promotional stories on the U.S. Navy’s official site,navy.mil, or the Air Force’s af.mil.

The Defense Department is advising service members and families to review their social media information and remove anything that may compromise their security.