Navigating cyber and physical risks: Strategies for work, home, and travel

Unpredictability is today’s new normal. As cyber and physical risks become increasingly interconnected, individuals and businesses must adapt to a rapidly evolving threat landscape. Here, we explore strategies that can help anticipate and plan for these multifaceted risks, as well as mitigate future threats.

Understanding the evolving risk landscape

Dale Buckner, CEO of Global Guardian—a comprehensive security and duty of care firm—joined me earlier this year to discuss why wealthy individuals are prime targets, and the growing risks they face at work, home and during travel. Recently, our Cyber Advisory Team reengaged Buckner to assess how the situation has evolved. Three themes have emerged as 2025 has progressed:

• Global conflicts are increasingly impacting security and trade.
• Cyber attacks, many fueled by AI, are exposing more personal information and digital footprints.
• The new U.S. presidential administration is implementing changes to existing diplomatic relationships and policies, prompting uncertainty among some international partners.

The heightened state of global security

With nearly 60 conflicts worldwide and 92 countries affected—the most since World War II—physical security concerns have reached unprecedented levels. Factors such as warfare in Ukraine and Russia, escalating tensions in the Middle East and Asia, and blocked trade routes are contributing to this heightened state of alert.

Significant economic and geopolitical shifts by the new U.S. presidential administration have caused global reverberations. Tariff threats, changes in security stances and potential exits from international alliances have rattled the global community, and the cyber community is expecting retaliatory attacks.

“U.S. foreign aid has often been a lubricant in crisis negotiations and diplomatic talks. With that in flux, it will be harder for the U.S. to negotiate crisis situations,” said Buckner.

The interconnected nature of cyber and physical risks

Cyber attacks, increasingly fueled by AI, are accelerating sophisticated breaches that expose personal and sensitive information. This not only leads to specifically targeted attacks, but also increases the physical compromising of homes and individuals.

In this heightened risk landscape, clients are asking critical questions:

• How do we rethink risk if our business has employees traveling to or operating in countries experiencing unrest?
• How do we support family members traveling abroad, attending school or living globally in areas of unrest?
• How do we mitigate the increasing amount of online information being leaked about our family, including personal information and addresses?

Proactive strategies for businesses and families

For businesses, including family offices, it’s crucial to integrate security into readiness discussions—both cyber and physical security experts.

“The global landscape is shifting rapidly. Boards that once prioritized only the bottom line are now grappling with the unavoidable realities of geopolitical tension and economic fragmentation. Ignoring these factors is no longer an option—it’s a liability,” said Buckner.

These specialists are often called upon only when an emergency strikes, but in the current environment, it’s crucial to have upfront discussions on handling various crisis scenarios.

• Execute and stress test emergency plans before incidents occur.
• Establish relationships with security providers, legal advisors, PR and cyber risk mitigation providers before a crisis.
• Actively reduce the public exposure and digital footprint of executives, board members and the company to minimize potential threats.

For wealthy individuals and families, global events and cyber breaches can bring targeted attacks and physical risks directly to their doorsteps. The recent Coinbase breach revealed that cybercriminals paid offshore customer service teams to release crypto account holders’ information, including home addresses. A broad digital footprint leads to heightened risk. Nearly 50% of all data breaches involves sensitive personally identifiable information (PII)¹, which makes targeting wealthy individuals even easier.

Preparing for unpredictability

As families travel, study abroad, or commute to work, preparing for eventualities is key. Here’s what to consider:

• Plan for emergencies before traveling: How will you or your family handle a crisis before it occurs? Whom will you call in the event of a medical emergency, natural disaster or other needed evacuations? Hire professionals to guide you.
• Reduce your and your family members’ digital footprints and social media exposure: Excessive online exposure can put your family and home at risk. Do you know your family’s full digital exposure? Find out and work to reduce it.
• Implement cyber defenses and privacy tools daily to minimize risk exposure (e.g., VPNs, privacy browsers, password managers), secure the home network, and address vulnerabilities to prevent cybercriminals from entering your home digitally.

We can help

Your J.P. Morgan team is committed to providing safe, resilient services to clients and partners within an ever-evolving threat landscape, offering practical guidance and resources to keep you, your family and your information cybersecure. To learn more about protecting your business and yourself from cybercriminals, please contact your J.P. Morgan team for resources, or visit our Cyber & Fraud Prevention Hub for more information.

 ¹https://secureframe.com/blog/data-breach-statistics