SACRAMENTO, Calif.-Joel Stuckey, vice president with SAFE Credit Union, was recently honored by the FBI for his community service through InfraGard. Sacramento FBI Special Agent in Charge, Herb Brown honored Stuckey with an Award Certificate for Exceptional Service to the Public Interest.
InfraGard members are connected to a national network and communicate with federal law enforcement and government agencies through their local InfraGard chapters, and contribute to the security and protection of national infrastructure from threats and attacks.
Below, Stuckey discusses InfraGard with Credit Union Journal.
CU Journal: What is InfraGard?
Stuckey: InfraGard is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the private sector. InfraGard promotes ongoing dialogue and timely communication between financial intuitions, many other private sector organizations, state and local law enforcement agencies, and the FBI.
Members gain access to information that enables them to protect their assets and in turn give information to prevent terrorism.
CUJ: How did you come to be involved?
Stuckey: As part of my security responsibilities at SAFE, I've been involved with law enforcement agencies and worked with security managers from major banks for some time.
I helped form a Financial Institution Security Network, comprised of 46 banks and credit unions in the Sacramento region, to share information on ATM and branch robberies and casings.
So when I was invited to join InfraGard five years ago, it was a perfect fit for me to represent financial institutions.
CUJ: In general, what are the responsibilities, and what kind of information is being shared?
Stuckey: As a Community Liaison Officer, I communicate to InfraGard, which in turn communicates to all law enforcement agencies. I relay any terrorism-related activities or threats shared by financial institutions.
CUJ: Given the volume of information being generated, is the FBI able to act on the type/amount of information the group provides?
Stuckey: Absolutely! The FBI has super-succeeded in their efforts to capture and disrupt terrorists.
On a weekly basis, terrorism is thwarted without the threat ever being known by civilians.
And, as part of the network, I see inside information from Homeland Security first-hand.
CUJ: Is there a particular trend/security threat that is perhaps being under-reported and which you would urge other credit unions to monitor?
Stuckey: Unfortunately, robberies are on the increase in this bad economy. Desperate times lead to desperate acts.
It's more important than ever for credit unions to provide frequent robbery training to their staff-at least twice a year, and more often if possible.
Several robberies at our organization alone have been prevented by this training and by our staff's attentiveness to approaching every person as they come through the door.
