Why ASIS’s New Executive Protection Standard Changes the Game for Leaders

CrisisWire
Oct 2
2 min read

A Shift in Executive Security

For years, executive protection has been piecemeal — personal bodyguards here, ad-hoc travel checks there, reactive responses after a crisis. ASIS International has just changed the rules. Their newly released Executive Protection (EP) Standard is a first-of-its-kind benchmark that elevates protection from “nice-to-have” to a leadership duty.

The Problem: Fragmented Executive Protection

CEOs and boards often delegate EP to private vendors without oversight.
Security programs rarely include family members or lifestyle vulnerabilities.
Few organizations use standardized audits or risk frameworks for protection.
Liability exposure: lawsuits after stalking incidents, travel kidnappings, and online threats are now more common than ever.

Without standards, leaders gamble with reputation, safety, and shareholder trust.

What the ASIS Standard Delivers

ASIS’s framework demands:

Strategic Risk Assessment: Threats scored across digital, physical, travel, and reputational domains.
Family Inclusion: Executives aren’t just individuals — families and residences are now part of the protection matrix.
Auditable Programs: Boards must review EP like they do cybersecurity or compliance.
Continuous Improvement: EP is no longer a one-time checklist; it’s a cycle of testing, red-teaming, and revising.

This is more than compliance. It’s accountability.

Why ASIS’s New Executive Protection Standard Changes the Game for Leaders

Leadership Playbook: How to Align with the New Standard

Commission a Full EP Risk Assessment — Map exposures across home, travel, digital, and insider threats.
Board-Level Reporting — Require quarterly EP briefings just like financial or cyber audits.
Family & Residence Protection — Apply the same standards at the executive’s home, online footprint, and family travel.
Integrate OSINT Monitoring — Use open-source intelligence to track threats from social media, dark web, and protest networks.
Run Scenario Exercises — Simulate executive stalking, workplace intrusion, or travel disruption.

Leadership Responsibility

Leaders can no longer treat executive protection as a luxury. It is now a fiduciary responsibility. Insurers, investors, and regulators increasingly see EP as a baseline expectation for governance. Boards who ignore it will face consequences after the next crisis.

Is your executive protection program aligned with the new ASIS Standard? Or are you still running blind?

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