Executive Exposure in 2025: What Recent Vulnerability Assessments Reveal About the State of Executive Protection

When the personal becomes public, risk multiplies. That’s one of the core takeaways from our new report, Executive Digital Exposure Trends: Understand and Reduce Your Risk which draws on expert analysis of recent executive vulnerability assessments. The report surfaces a clear and troubling reality: threat actors no longer need to breach enterprise infrastructure to harm a company. They just need access to the personal, often public, data surrounding its leadership.

In this report, we unpack how seemingly mundane digital traces such as real estate listings, social media posts, breached credentials, and people search sites are contributing to an evolving threat landscape for today’s executives and their families.

Key findings from the report include:

• 98% had a property linked to their name in public records or people search sites, with 92% of those having viewable exterior images.
• 100% had breach data linking their name to at least one past or current email address.
• 58% had their Social Security numbers compromised in breach data.
• Executives had an average of more than three public mainstream social media accounts, and 20% revealed sensitive information.
• 30% of executives’ family members publicly shared geolocation and pattern-of-life information.

In the weeks following the fatal shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO, we observed a surge in threats against executives, our analysts detected 2,200 threats, a 41% increase compared to the prior six months. That spike raised an important question: how exposed are senior leaders in today’s digital environment?

To answer that, we compiled and analyzed recent vulnerability assessments from executives across multiple industries and roles through our client work. The result is a trend analysis designed to help organizations understand where executive exposure is occurring and how to reduce it.

While no two leaders are exactly alike, the exposure patterns are alarmingly consistent.

• Home addresses, floor plans, and interior photos were routinely identified by our analysts in open-sources like real estate and people search sites.
• Social media activity, including posts by spouses and children, routinely revealed travel plans, home details, and personal routines.
• Sensitive personal data isn’t just leaked—it’s monetized. SSNs, email addresses, phone numbers, and even plaintext passwords appeared regularly in breach data and on dark web marketplaces.

Individually, these exposures may seem minor. Combined, they significantly raise the risk of physical threats, account takeovers, social engineering, and reputational damage. These risks represent a growing attack surface most organizations aren’t accounting for.

Our report doesn’t just highlight risk. It outlines what’s working. These insights help security teams focus on what matters most.

Our assessments show a clear shift in how threat actors operate. Today’s threat actors aren’t relying on sophisticated exploits. They’re using persistence, open-source intel, and the everyday details most teams overlook. When executives and their families are digitally exposed, the risks extend well beyond the individual to the brand and business itself.

To respond effectively, companies must understand:

• Where and how exposure is happening
• What information is most likely to be used in an attack
• Which mitigation steps can reduce risk in both the short and long term

The good news? With the right visibility and a proactive approach, security teams can reduce the risk by shrinking the executive attack surface and building meaningful resilience.

We’ve only touched on a fraction of what our analysts uncovered. The report offers a deeper look at how executive risk is evolving, backed by specific insights, field-tested recommendations, and strategies that have proven effective in reducing exposure.

Download the full Executive Digital Exposure Trends: Understand and Reduce Your Risk report to explore:

• Digital, physical, and reputational risks executives face today
• Common sources of exposure and how to neutralize them
• Insights and recommendations to guide your protection strategy

Request your copy now

Get the clarity you need to stay ahead of evolving risks, along with practical guidance to do something about it.

For deeper insights and expert recommendations on the findings from our Executive Vulnerabilities Report, check out the recorded webinar and hear directly from the team behind the research.

Watch the webinar now

About Nisos®

Nisos is a trusted digital investigations partner specializing in unmasking human risk. We operate as an extension of security, risk, legal, people strategy, and trust and safety teams to protect their people and their business. Our open source intelligence services help enterprise teams mitigate risk, make critical decisions, and impose real world consequences. For more information, visit: https://nisos.com.