A new report from TorchStone Global has identified 13 domestic and 16 international security incidents, or updates to previous cases, affecting high-profile individuals in March 2026. Below are several key incidents from the past month.
- Conflict resumed in the Middle East on February 28 with the U.S./Israel targeting of Iranian leaders, including its Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. Iran retaliated against Israel, U.S. assets in the area, and multiple Gulf countries that host major corporate offices throughout the month of March. While there were no other notable attacks on prominent individuals outside of Iran, the conflict contributes to an overall climate of threats against prominent individuals. Antisemitic threats continued: U.S. Representative Max Miller revealed that he had received a violent, antisemitic voicemail this month. Additionally, U.S. authorities uncovered a Jewish extremist plot to assassinate Nerdeen Kiswani, a New York-based pro-Palestine activist. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East generally raises the risk of ideologically motivated threats towards prominent individuals who are outspoken about the conflict—or simply because of their identity.
- Police arrested a 30-year-old woman accused of driving across the country to open fire on Rihanna’s Beverly Hills home the afternoon of March 8. No one was harmed in the incident, but it was an alarming illustration of how fixated individuals can pose threats to prominent individuals. In this case, the woman who carried out the attack had a long history of subscribing to online conspiracy theories about Rihanna and other celebrities. Most celebrities attract similarly concerning online attention and criticism, and this attack demonstrates the importance of monitoring online fixation to identify threats before they materialize.
- Dutch media entrepreneur Eline van der Velden revealed that she and her production company had received death threats against the generative AI actor Tilly Norwood that she created. Van der Velden created Norwood as a provocative, artistic experiment, and it has attracted significant attention and criticism. The threats highlight the intense discourse around the adoption of AI in society—particularly in the entertainment and arts industry.