For high-profile individuals and executives, email remains both a vital communication tool and a serious cybersecurity liability. One of the most persistent and dangerous threats isn’t mass phishing—it’s spear phishing, a form of highly targeted digital deception that has evolved dramatically in recent years.

Increasingly supercharged by AI-powered reconnaissance, these attacks now blend social engineering with deep personalization, bypassing spam filters and catching even the most vigilant off guard.

Spear Phishing vs. Phishing: What’s the Difference?

At a glance, spear phishing may look like a more “sophisticated” phishing attack, but the distinction is more profound. Traditional phishing casts a wide net as attackers send generic messages to thousands of recipients, hoping for a few clicks. These often include generic alerts (“Your account has been compromised!”), receipts for false purchases, or fake login pages designed to harvest your credentials.

Spear phishing, by contrast, targets a specific individual or small group after significant research. The attacker typically researches the victim’s public-facing digital footprint—LinkedIn, press releases, email patterns, even breached data from prior leaks—to craft a highly convincing message.

Think: a fake email from your CFO asking for a wire transfer, a seemingly benign meeting invitation referencing real past projects, or even a phone call from a coworker asking for sensitive login information.

Or, to put it simply:

  • Phishing = quantity over quality
  • Spear phishing = quality over quantity, precision-engineered for deception, and frequently enhanced with AI.

Who Is at Risk of Spear Phishing Attacks?

Spear phishing targets individuals with access, influence, or perceived value, making certain groups disproportionately vulnerable. Corporate executives, boards of directors, high-profile individuals, and high-net-worth individuals are prime targets due to their financial resources, access to sensitive information, and public visibility.

However, the risk extends further throughout organizations, as spear-phishing scammers target employees who can serve as indirect gateways into organizations. These include:

  • Executive assistants
  • Finance and HR personnel
  • IT administrators
  • High-access employees

Spear-phishing campaigns can even extend beyond the corporate world. Family members can become attack vectors—including spouses, children, or caretakers— especially when attackers seek to exploit personal details or shared accounts to bypass corporate defenses. Politicians, journalists, and healthcare professionals have also seen rising spear-phishing activity, particularly when they’re associated with sensitive data or controversial issues.

In short, anyone with privileged access or a digital footprint worth exploiting is potentially at risk.

Spear Phishing vs. Whaling

While both are targeted, whaling is spear phishing aimed squarely at the C-suite or high-net-worth individuals. The goal is often financial: fraudulent wire transfers, sensitive data theft, or impersonation to gain further access.

Whaling attacks frequently reference real-world relationships or financial responsibilities, making them incredibly hard to spot without cybersecurity training and protective systems in place.

How AI Is Supercharging Spear Phishing

Modern spear phishing campaigns are no longer limited by human effort. AI-powered cyberattacks now make it easier to analyze social media behavior, generate convincing language, and even replicate writing style.

Deepfake voice and video impersonations, also known as vishing, are being layered into business email compromise (BEC) scams—adding credibility and urgency to requests.

In one 2023 case, attackers used AI voice cloning to impersonate a company’s CEO during a phone call to the finance team, successfully tricking them into approving a $35 million transfer.

Other Notable Examples of Spear Phishing Attacks

  1. Ubiquiti Networks (2021) – Attackers posed as company executives and convinced employees to make $46.7 million in transfers. The breach started with stolen credentials and evolved into a sophisticated spear phishing operation.
  2. Colonial Pipeline (2021) – While the ransomware made headlines, initial access was likely achieved through spear phishing and compromised passwords.
  3. RSA Security (2011) – Attackers sent an Excel spreadsheet titled “2021 Recruitment Plan” with an embedded zero-day exploit. This led to the theft of sensitive data used in attacks on U.S. defense contractors.

How to Prevent Spear Phishing Attacks

While spear-phishing attacks have grown more advanced, so have prevention strategies. Here are five steps you and your organization can take to minimize the risk of these attacks.

1. Personal Threat Modeling

Threat modeling is a proactive, comprehensive process that identifies potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities to help mitigate risk. As the primary targets of spear-phishing attacks, executives and high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) require more than basic antivirus protection. Proper threat modeling should include their public digital footprint, breach history, and social connections that could be leveraged for exploitation. Cyber defenses should be tailored to each executive based on the information already publicly available.

2. Zero Trust Identity Verification

Never trust, always verify. That’s the zero trust framework. As AI-generated deepfakes and voice clones become increasingly convincing, traditional cues such as voice or video calls can no longer guarantee authenticity.

  • Use secure identity verification protocols such as BlackCloak’s industry-first Identity Verification feature, offering vital cybersecurity for the age of AI.
  • Utilize multi-factor authentication, biometric checks, or codeword-based verification for any sensitive requests involving wire transfers, access credentials, or confidential communications.
  • Out of band verification: Train staff and family members to verify identities through a known second channel (e.g., a direct phone call or secure messaging app) before responding to unexpected or high-risk requests, especially those that claim urgency or secrecy.

3. Advanced Email Threat Protection

Modern spear phishing can bypass standard spam filters. Invest in tools that use behavioral analytics and natural language processing to flag unusual sender behavior or urgent requests.

4. Home Network Security

Attackers may go after assistants, spouses, or family members who lack the same security controls. Home networks are often the weak link in corporate cybersecurity, so any comprehensive digital executive and HNWI protection should extend to family members in their home—and anywhere else they use their devices.

5. Continuous Education and Simulation

Even seasoned executives fall for these scams. Ongoing phishing simulations and briefings help keep your guard up against evolving tactics. While cyber protections continue to evolve to match the increasing complexity of cyberattacks, the human factor must also adapt and evolve to keep pace with the latest threats.

6. Use of Managed Cybersecurity Services

Firms that specialize in executive and HNWI cyber protection can offer continuous monitoring, takedown of exposed personally identifiable information (PII), and response services tailored to the digital risks of high-profile individuals.

Ensure high-profile employees are protected everywhere and at all times, not just during office hours.

BlackCloak: Spear-Phishing Protection in the Age of AI

BlackCloak is the industry leader in protecting corporate executives, boards of directors, HNWIs, and high-profile individuals against spear-phishing and other digital risks. Our industry-first Identity Verification feature provides a layer of defense against the latest AI-driven cyberattacks, and our comprehensive Digital Executive Protection Platform ensures that clients and their families can trust their security posture—and the security of their associated corporations—remains strong.

Contact our team to learn more today.