How Executives Can Protect Themselves Against Cyber Threats

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Why should executives be concerned about cybersecurity threats on a personal level?

Anybody who uses a smartphone, a computer or any electronic device should care about cybersecurity. If you are a high-profile individual who leads an organization of any size in any industry you should care even more. You are seen as the ideal target for cybercriminals and you may have a lot to lose.

• Your personal assets, such as financial accounts, real estate, and other valuable items are constantly at risk. The more assets you have, the bigger a target you become. More and better cybersecurity measures should be put in place to protect them.
• Cybercriminals can steal your personal information for identity theft, financial fraud, and other malicious activities. This can have serious consequences for you and your family.
• If you are in the public eye as the leader of your organization, a cyber attack on your personal accounts or devices can damage your reputation and that of the organization you represent. Imagine the impact on the stock market if an intimate video of a CEO of an important company is leaked online.
  
• Many industries and organizations have regulations and laws that require executives to take appropriate measures to protect their personal sensitive information. 

Beyond the security features implemented at your workplace, you should definitely tighten the security in your environment.

What and who are the top threats for executives and their families?

• Bad actors are constantly attempting to trick everyone including high-profile individuals into downloading malware or providing sensitive information such as login credentials or financial information via phishing and social engineering attacks.
• If they manage to infiltrate your device, they may encrypt the files and ask you to pay a ransom to get them back or to avoid their public disclosure. Ransomware is becoming one of the most lethal types of cyber attack.
  
• State-sponsored actors or well-funded criminal organizations are carrying out sophisticated cyber attacks called Advanced Persistent Threats (APT) to target corporate leaders, politicians, and other well-known individuals with the intention of blackmailing them, stealing trade secrets, or gaining access to their organizations’ networks
• Insider threats can come from employees or contractors who have access to sensitive information and may intentionally or accidentally compromise your security. 

How and where are executives being targeted?

Malicious actors leverage emails, social media, public Wi-Fi, conferences and events to target executives. 

They use a barrage of tactics from deceptive tricks like phishing and social engineering to more technical approaches like ransomware. 

They exploit vulnerabilities such as outdated software, unpatched systems, or weak passwords to gain unauthorized access.

They use various types of malware, such as Trojans, viruses, and spyware, to steal sensitive information.

They use brute-force attacks to crack passwords.

When necessary they even carry out physical attacks to get their hands on sensitive data and devices.

How can executives protect themselves?

What resources are available to help executives protect themselves in the digital world?

• Books

• • Cybersecurity for Executives, Managers, and Leaders by Dennis Houchin
  • The CISO Evolution: Business Knowledge for Cybersecurity Executives by Matthew K. Sharp, Kyriakos Lambros
  • The Security Culture Playbook: An Executive Guide To Reducing Risk and Developing Your Human Defense Layer by Perry Carpenter, Kai Roer
  • Executive’s Cybersecurity Program Handbook: A comprehensive guide to building and operationalizing a complete cybersecurity program by Jason Brown
  • The Executive’s Cybersecurity Advisor: Gain Critical Business Insight in Minutes by Michael Gable
  • Executive’s Guide to Cyber Risk: Securing the Future Today by Siegfried Moyo

• Courses

• • Executive Cybersecurity Awareness Training by CyberVista
  • Cybersecurity for Business Leaders by Udacity
  • Cybersecurity for Managers and Executives: Taking the Lead by TUDelft

• Documents

• • 2023 Global Future of Cyber Survey by Deloitte
  • Future/Tense Trend Micro Security Predictions for 2023 by TrendMicro
  • Elevating the Cybersecurity Discussion: Why CEOs need to get more involved in securing the business by Accenture

• Podcasts

• • Cyber CEOs Decoded host by Marc van Zadelhoff
  • CEO Viewpoints Episode 6: The role of culture in navigating cybersecurity challenges
  • Chambers Talks Episode 23: The Future of Cybersecurity with the CEOs of Pindrop, Privoro, and Rubrik
     by John Chambers

For more content about cybersecurity and executives, visit:

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This article was written by Marc R with the support of Team CyberMaterial, Sofia C. V., Nicolás P , Fabino R. D

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