Protecting Those Who Protect: Executive Security for Modern Military

Modern Military Association of America is the leading advocacy organization for LGBTQ+ service members, veterans, and their families. They work to protect and expand civil rights for this community through education, advocacy, support networks, and discrimination tracking across the worldwide U.S. military community. What makes them exceptional is their comprehensive approach: they don't just advocate for policy change, they provide direct support when discrimination happens, track incidents to identify patterns, and connect people with resources to resolve issues in real-time. Their work is critical, visible, and often controversial. That visibility comes with risks.

Problem: Executive Director doxxed and threatened

Modern Military's previous executive director was doxxed; meaning their personal information (home address, phone numbers, family details) was exposed online and weaponized against them due to their civil rights work. "We've seen an increase in hate speech on our social media," says Rachel Branaman, the Executive Director of Modern Military as of May 2025. But the threats go deeper than angry comments. With federal grants bringing unwanted visibility from the current administration, Modern Military's leadership team faces compounding risks.

The stakes are personal. "My colleague who has a trans kid - and many of our board members - are being directly impacted by a lot of the policies that are coming down. That's why this is very important," Rachel explains.

One colleague was considering a service that quoted several thousand dollars to protect her entire family. She was especially concerned about her teenagers, who regularly share information online without thinking about the consequences. The need for protection was clear, the question was how to make it accessible and sustainable.

Impact: Over 200 data broker records removed in the first quarter

Almost one year into our partnership, the results speak for themselves. "I think it was super easy. And I got everybody's information on my board and staff who wanted the service and added them really quickly and easily, and they were all happy to have that resource," Rachel says. Within the first quarter of partnership (starting Q4 2024), Kanary removed over 200 data broker records exposing Modern Military executives' personal information including home addresses and phone numbers. In the second quarter Kanary removed 90 more, and a total of 100 additional records were removed in the last half of the year. While the initial cleanup was substantial, ongoing monitoring is essential to catch new exposures before they become threats.

Every 30 days Kanary scans for new exposures, and then the system ranks each by the level of risk they impose. For example, in the second quarter about 100 results were flagged as non-threatening (legitimate news coverage, press releases, or positive social media mentions), so Modern Military's team didn't have to waste time reviewing their own content or positive mentions, and could focus on risky exposures they wanted removed.

The value went beyond just their own organization. "I passed it on to a couple other organizations who are interested," Rachel notes. When you find protection that works, you share it with others facing the same risks.

How you can get Kanary for your team or organization

If your organization faces similar risks, whether you're doing advocacy work, serving vulnerable communities, or simply have executives who need protection, you can set up Kanary for your team in less than 5 minutes. Visit kanary.com/enterprise to get started. We'll handle the data removal, the monitoring, and the ongoing protection. You handle changing the world.