Security of top officials: How not to become a target in the digital world

The first article was prepared by Medet Turin — one of the most famous hackers in Kazakhstan. In his article, he explains how not to become a target in the digital world and offers a digital hygiene checklist for top executives.

Medet Turin, city — Almaty, founder of 2600 Qazaqstan, Instagram

Why hackers specifically target you

“Why hack a system if you can hack a person?” — this principle has long become the foundation of modern cybercrime. And if in the past banks and government structures were at risk, today the main target is you: the founder, CEO, investor, decision-maker.

Hackers understand: compromising just one top manager’s account is enough to gain access to the entire organization, its funds, reputation, and future.

While the IT department implements protection systems, the CEO has a weak email password, and the assistant downloaded a “document” from a phishing link.

Why is this happening? Because attacks on top executives are:

— high-stakes: blackmail, data leaks, influence on deals

— lower level of protection than servers

— personal weaknesses: haste, ego, trust.

This is why in 2025, business attacks increasingly start not with a virus, but with the LinkedIn, WhatsApp, and Instagram accounts of top managers.

Case studies: how top executives are hacked

Jeff Bezos — founder of Amazon

In 2018, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos received a video file via WhatsApp from a number associated with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. According to experts, data began to be transmitted from his phone afterward. Subsequently, versions emerged about the possible use of spyware — including Pegasus from NSO Group. Although direct evidence of this specific spyware was not published, the case became a landmark example of how even a “secured” smartphone can be compromised. Shortly after the hack, the tabloid National Enquirer published intimate messages and photos of Bezos, indicating his extramarital affair. Bezos himself stated that he was being blackmailed, demanding he drop the investigation.

Conclusion: even if you use the most modern device, a targeted attack involving social engineering can breach any defenses.

Elon Musk and the crypto scheme on X

In 2020, 17-year-old hacker Graham Ivan Clark organized an attack on dozens of celebrity accounts on Twitter — including Elon Musk, Barack Obama, and Apple. The hack was not technically complex: the attacker gained access through Twitter employees by deception. Through these top accounts, he and his accomplices promoted a fake crypto scheme.

Conclusion: insider threats + gullibility = disaster. Even the largest companies are not protected if there is no strict access verification.

Startups under fire: attacks at early stages

In recent years, dozens of cases have been recorded where startup founders were attacked via email or Telegram. In one case in the US, a founder’s bank details were altered in correspondence with an investor. In another, access to the team’s Slack was gained through the compromise of the CTO’s personal account.

Conclusion: attacks on startups are no less attractive to cybercriminals. Especially if founders lack time and budget for basic security.

Case from Kazakhstan

In early 2025, in Kazakhstan, the founder of a large company became a victim of a targeted phishing attack. Scammers created a Telegram bot posing as an event registration system and distributed it through trusted channels. After the founder entered his phone number and completed authorization, his Telegram account was hijacked, but he was unaware of this for several months. Presumably, the attackers monitored his activity. However, later fake instructions began to be sent to employees and contractors from his account, not to mention the leak of personal correspondence and saved files.

Conclusion: Telegram bots are a new form of phishing in the CIS. And if you are a public figure, the probability of a targeted attack is significantly higher.

Attack vectors against top executives: how hunters target those in charge

The vulnerability of top executives is not just about technology. It is about their lifestyle, schedule, public presence, and... trust in their own circle. Let’s examine the main routes hackers use to attack top managers:

1. Phishing and CEO fraud

Emails, SMS, messages in Telegram/WhatsApp or even Instagram, disguised as:

— an urgent request from a partner

— an invitation to a conference

— a notification from Apple / Google / Meta.

Attack format: “Please confirm your identity” → link → fake login form.

“Realistic” phishing sites are especially dangerous, which are impossible to distinguish without careful URL verification.

2. SIM-swap and attacks on messengers

Using fake documents and weak operator verification, attackers obtain a copy of a SIM card, intercepting SMS and calls. They then regain access to Telegram, WhatsApp, and even bank accounts.

Who is in the crosshairs? — People whose numbers “appear” in public spaces, especially on company websites or in Whois domains, if we are talking about startups.

3. Compromising assistants

One of the most popular routes is through an assistant, PR manager, or office manager. These people receive emails, calls, and documents on behalf of “higher management,” often lacking digital hygiene skills.

This is how stories begin with “transfer the money,” “send the file,” “log in to the system via this VPN.”

4. Wi-Fi and hotel traps

Travel, conferences, coffee with an investor in London — all this increases the chances of falling into a risk zone:
— fake Wi-Fi access points in airports and hotels. Today, you can encounter fake networks with a deployed phishing Captive Portal, where entering confidential data or downloading a malicious client is offered to connect to the internet

— public charging stations with embedded chips.

5. Attacks through social networks

Often, CEOs themselves publish schedules, geolocations, and surroundings — making themselves an easy target. Instagram/Facebook accounts of spouses or children become a source of additional information: photos of the house, car, and devices. The favorite social network of any hacker is LinkedIn. Through it, you can always figure out who to write to, on whose behalf, and how. For example, writing as the accountant of company Y to the CFO of company Z.

6. Shadow IT and personal devices

Executives often use personal MacBooks, iPhones, or tablets for work — poorly secured, without MDM, without VPN, and with passwords auto-saved in the browser.

This gives hackers a chance to bypass corporate protection and enter “through the back door.”

Again, the above are only the main and popular vectors. In reality, variations of attacks on top executives can be generated infinitely, depending on their character, lifestyle, and personality.

Digital hygiene checklist for top executives

To not become the main entry point for an attack on your own company — here are basic recommendations that every CEO, founder, and investor should follow:

1. Hardware keys. Use YubiKey or similar for access to Google, Microsoft, Telegram, and social networks. This is the best solution against phishing.

2. Separate devices. One smartphone for work tasks. Another for communication with family, media, and social networks.

For super confidential conversations, so that even threats at the Pegasus level are powerless — specialists can assemble a secured smartphone for you. The downside is that your interlocutor must have the same smartphone.

3. VPN + anti-tracking. A reputable VPN, “anti-tracking” mode, tracker blocking, and disabling geolocation. Especially important during business trips.

4. Minimal public presence. Do not list your personal number in open sources. Register domains through proxy services. Delete outdated profiles and e-mails from past projects.

5. Team discipline. Conduct training for your personal assistant, PR manager, and those who communicate on your behalf. Implement a rule: all financial and critical actions require double confirmation.

6. Leak monitoring. Set up automatic monitoring of e-mails, phone numbers, and accounts in leak databases. Connect paid tools if your activities are high-risk.

Family — the most vulnerable link in the protection chain

You can use a YubiKey, travel without a smartphone, and sleep next to a Faraday box, but one compromised Instagram account of your daughter or TikTok profile of your son — and all your paranoia turns into a meme.

Hackers have long understood: if you can’t hack the CEO, attack their circle. Spouse, children, even a nanny or driver can become that very entry point.

Examples from practice:

— wives of top executives in the CIS received messages from “Instagram support” asking to confirm their account — as a result, they lost access, and messages were sent to company employees from their names

— teenagers posting videos with home interiors unconsciously revealed security details, IT devices, “smart home” systems, and even car license plates

— in one case in Europe, hackers gained access to a C-level manager’s family Google Photos through his son, and from there obtained the manager’s password, which he used everywhere. How? On one of the family photos, in the background, there was a sticker with that very password.

What to do:

— train your family in digital hygiene just as you train security personnel

— use private profiles, two-factor authentication, and default access settings set to “friends only.”

— be an example: if you are careless with data — do not expect discipline from your children.

Conclusion: You are a target, and that’s normal!

Being a top executive means being in the spotlight. It is the price of power, influence, and success. But the digital world makes this position even more vulnerable than before.

Hackers don’t always look for money. Sometimes they want to influence the market, leak negotiations, make the company look bad, or simply practice on your overconfidence.

“Security today is not software, not hardware, and not the IT department. It is discipline. It is a matter of habits, culture, and responsibility for consequences.”

If you are a business leader, investor, or executive — your cybersecurity should start not with a firewall, but with awareness.