Cybercriminals Think You’re an Easy Target. Prove Them Wrong
No one likes to manage dozens or even hundreds of ever-changing passwords. No surprise, then, that one frustrated private equity chief operating officer simply refused. Instead, he used a single password for most of his accounts, both personal and professional.
What happened next should come as no surprise, either: in a hack unrelated to his work, cybercriminals captured his password. Then they used that password to breach the COO’s personal email, work email and eventually his entire company.
Cue ransomware attack. The firm’s environment was shut down, and employees were unable to work for weeks. Not to mention the financial and reputational costs. Accepting a small personal inconvenience upfront could have prevented the breach and its ripple effects.
Preventing cyberattacks goes beyond implementing appropriate security technology. Your business, including your people and your processes, may be vulnerable as well. Often, cybercriminals are looking for footholds in your devices, where they can sit quietly, gather information and learn how you operate before launching a larger attack.
Many families with significant wealth, businesses and family offices find themselves largely unprepared.
A sophisticated crime landscape
Cyberattacks, automated bots, AI deepfakes, supply chain software vulnerabilities, ransomware – today’s cybercrime landscape is much more sophisticated than it was just a few years ago. This is true for businesses of all sizes, not just the large organizations whose cyberbreaches make the news.
Finding an easy target
High-net-worth individuals and families, investment offices, family offices and private businesses are particularly attractive targets for cybercriminals due to their perceived wealth, significant resources and extensive digital footprints. In our 2024 Global Family Office Report, 24% of family office respondents said they had been victims of cyberattacks. Of family offices with more than $1 billion in assets, 40% said they had suffered a breach.
Given the rapidly changing landscape of cyberthreats and their increasing severity, it’s far better to invest a modest amount in an assessment and prevention than to pay an exorbitant amount – in cash, reputation and headaches – in a ransomware or extortion attack that could have been avoided.
Rick Barragan is the Managing Director,
Los Angeles Market Manager, for
J.P. Morgan Private Bank.
[email protected] | (310) 860-3658
privatebank.jpmorgan.com/los-angeles
Source: “Cybercriminals think you’re an easy target. Prove them wrong”, Ileana van der Linde, head of cyber advisory, Aug. 15, 2026
