Dozens of security chiefs from major U.S. companies held a conference call Wednesday to discuss whether safety protocols should be tightened after UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot and killed by a gunman, according to reports. We talked.
Police said Thompson was walking alone from his hotel to a business meeting at the Hilton in midtown Manhattan when he was shot in what appeared to be a targeted attack. The CEO's former security provider said Wednesday he was shocked that Thompson had not assembled a private security team with bodyguards.
The killing was a wake-up call for corporate security teams, who said they had noticed an increase in violent threats against business leaders, particularly on social media, the report said. wall street journal.
“The environment is explosive right now,” Ed Davis, a former Boston police chief who consults with companies on security risks, told the Journal. “Threats are evolving and becoming more violent.”
Corporate leaders have been targets of violent attacks in the past. Starting in the 1970s, the Unabomber bombarded airline executives with explosives over a two-decade period, killing three and injuring others. In the early 1990s, kidnappers kidnapped and then murdered Exxon executive Sidney Leso.
But resentment against American companies has spread further, with some executives threatened over controversial diversity and inclusion initiatives and their companies' stance on the war in Gaza.
“This is a shock to the system,” Michael Evanoff, former assistant secretary for foreign affairs and security at the State Department, told the Journal. “That's a wake-up call.”
What we know about the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson
- Brian Thompson, CEO of insurance giant UnitedHealthcare, was shot and killed in a “brazen, targeted attack” outside a luxury midtown hotel on Wednesday, police said.
- The methodical killer used a silenced gun outside the Hilton Hotel on Sixth Avenue.
- The gunman fired multiple shots at Thompson, striking him in the back and right calf, before fleeing on foot.
- The NYPD releases new photos of the hooded suspect standing in front of the Starbucks counter at West 56th Street and Sixth Avenue, just minutes from the Hilton Hotel where Thompson, 50, was shot and killed. did.
- Mr. Thompson was appointed CEO of UnitedHealth in April 2021. He joined the company in 2004. He was one of several senior executives at the company under investigation by the Justice Department.
- Thompson's wife, Paulette, said she had received threats before her husband was killed.
- The New York City Police Department is investigating whether live bullets or shell casings left behind by a masked assassin may have been engraved with messages that appear to include the words “denial,” “resign,” and “defense.”
Follow the Post's live updates on news about Brian Thompson's murder.
Mr. Thompson's murder prompted major U.S. companies to rethink their security protocols.
Just hours after the attack, the head of security at pesticide supplier Corteva called the company's chief executive, Chuck McGraw, to ask if additional security measures were needed this week.
“Now, you ask yourself, OK, am I getting too relaxed? I don't know,” Magro told the Journal. “Every company will need to consider this.”
In particular, security teams are looking at large investor conferences, which are typically held in hotels or other large venues, but pose challenges because there aren't many entrances and exits.
Some executives have security guards walking one step ahead to watch for potential threats, while others are escorted to events by armed drivers.
More than a quarter of S&P 500 companies offer personal security services outside of work hours, according to Equilar data. About 13% provide security measures to executives other than the CEO, according to the data. These companies are not required to report spending on security measures during normal business hours.
In 2023, many companies spent millions of dollars on after-hours security measures. Meta spent $24 million on such security protocols, most of it for CEO Mark Zuckerberg, according to securities filings. Blackstone spent $4.6 million on these security measures last year, and Oracle and Las Vegas Sands each spent more than $3 million, according to Equilar.
UnitedHealth reported no such costs in 2023, according to the publication.
As a safety precaution, many corporate boards require executives to travel on corporate jets for business and sometimes personal purposes. According to a securities filing, UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Whitty is required to travel by jet for business purposes and may travel by private plane for personal travel. Encouraged.
UnitedHealth executives did not use corporate jets for personal travel last year, according to filings.
