Intelligence, Not Just Data: How ProAlign Uses Kanary in its Mission to Protect People from Digital and Physical Threats

ProAlign's Vice President explains why OSINT-driven intelligence, not raw data, is what keeps clients safe, and why Kanary earned a place in that toolkit.

Erin Beffa, VP, ProAlign

Erin Beffa has spent her career convinced of one idea: open-source intelligence is one of the most powerful tools most organizations never learn to use. The same information sitting in plain sight can expose a person or protect them, depending entirely on who reaches it first. That conviction is what led her to build ProAlign, a firm that applies OSINT across industries that had never considered it before, and holds it to a single standard: it's used for good.

"Behind every assessment we run is a person we are trying to keep safe. That is the mission."

ProAlign sits at the intersection of digital and physical security, working from the premise that the two are no longer separate problems. An impersonated staff member, a compromised guest list, a piece of exposed personal data, any of it can become a genuine safety risk to the people ProAlign is there to protect. That is the lens Erin brings to her partnership with Kanary.

Kanary is woven into ProAlign's work on both sides of that equation: it protects ProAlign's own staff, the people running the assessments, and it's offered directly to clients as part of ProAlign's broader security services.

In this Q&A, Erin talks about why personal data exposure is a security issue for everyone regardless of rank, what made Kanary stand out from the field, and how she sees AI reshaping the threat landscape for her team and her clients.

Why exposure, not wealth, determines risk

What is your take on the role personal data exposure, impersonation, and doxxing play in an organization's overall security posture?

Far more common than most people are comfortable knowing. Personal data exposure is the quiet entry point for impersonation and doxxing, and it rarely stays quiet for long. The misconception we correct most often is that wealth makes the target. It does not. The assistant, the analyst, the family member, anyone can be targeted. Rank does not determine risk. Exposure does. Everyone benefits from stronger personal data protection because the data is theirs to begin with, and it should be defended.

Protecting the team doing the protecting

ProAlign's analysts spend their days finding exposure before someone with bad intentions does, which puts their own names and footprints in front of the same risks they investigate for clients. Erin brought Kanary in as coverage for that team first, before it ever became something ProAlign offered outward.

Why give Kanary licenses to ProAlign staff, and not just clients?

Our people are the ones doing this work every day, so they understand exposure risk better than almost anyone, which is exactly why we don't ask them to manage their own protection manually on top of everything else. An analyst's name and footprint are visible in the course of the work itself. Giving the team Kanary means that risk gets handled the same way we'd handle it for a client: quietly, thoroughly, and without anyone having to think about it day to day.

Why ProAlign chose Kanary

What has your personal experience using Kanary and interacting with the company been like?

“I’m consistently impressed by Kanary, and I do not say that lightly about a vendor.” 

What sets Kanary apart is that there are people behind it, not bots behind a screen. The service is attentive without being intrusive, and the protection is real. In a field crowded with promises, that combination is rare.

What drove the decision to offer Kanary to ProAlign clients?

We vetted the field carefully before choosing a partner. Kanary stood out because it refuses the cookie-cutter approach. Most services remove your data from a fixed list of brokers and call it complete. Kanary goes further, pursuing exposure where it actually lives, across search engines, social media, and the corners of the internet others ignore. That thoroughness is exactly what our clients need, even when they do not know to ask for it.

Meeting clients where they are

How does Kanary stand out from alternative options to specifically address the risks of your clients?

Kanary lets us meet clients where they are. We can take the lead on their exposure directly, and the dashboard gives them a clear window into their own progress. Some clients want us fully in the driver's seat. Others want to watch the work happen and stay close to it. Kanary serves both without compromise. That flexibility is what makes it fit a client roster as varied as ours.

How do you roll Kanary out to clients as part of, or to complement, your broader services?

“Once it is set up, Kanary works quietly in the background. There is no constant nudging, no chasing takedowns by hand. It simply keeps going.”

This is a key selling point for clients who know data privacy matters but cannot spare the hours it usually demands. Protection that does not ask them to choose between their safety and their schedule.

Where digital exposure becomes physical risk

How do you use digital risk tooling and insights like Kanary to inform physical security initiatives?

Digital and physical security are not separate problems. We fold Kanary into our broader physical security assessments because the two feed each other constantly. An impersonated staff member can become unauthorized access to a secured space, a compromised guest list, a genuine safety risk to the people we are there to protect. Every physical security plan we build now assumes a digital layer. Kanary is a natural partner for exactly those scenarios.

What do clients report about using Kanary? Has any feedback been surprising?

Clients consistently value having both the app and the dashboard to stay close to their own protection. One piece of feedback we did not anticipate, and now hear often, is how much it matters to them that Kanary is a US-based company. Trust is key when you consider who is holding your personal data. It reassures them, and it reassures us.

The AI-shaped threat landscape ahead

How do you see AI's role in amplifying personal data risks?

AI is a double-edged sword, and we hold both edges honestly. It has handed threat actors new capabilities: fabricated imagery, synthetic video, convincing text engineered to slip past the safeguards that used to hold. That is real, and we do not minimize it. But the same technology that amplifies the threat can be turned to defend against it. That is the work we are choosing to do. We would rather shape how AI is used in this fight than watch it be used against us.

How do you envision this evolution impacting the services you provide to clients and how you work with Kanary?

Our clients are simply trying to do their work and live their lives. The rise of AI-enabled attacks adds one more weight to an already full load. AI can be a threat they did not ask for and should not have to manage alone. I expect demand for OSINT and for partners like Kanary to grow steadily as these attacks grow more sophisticated. Our goal does not change. We want our clients free to do their best work and let us help absorb stressors off their plate.

Advice for other providers

What would you tell other service providers weighing whether to offer Kanary to their clients?

Compare the actual services, not the marketing. The difference becomes obvious quickly. Ask yourself a simple question: are you paying for genuine protection, or for a great marketing team? Many of Kanary's competitors stop at merely removing data from a fixed list of brokers. They will not identify or remove exposure from anywhere else. Kanary does. For anyone serious about protecting their clients, that gap is the whole decision.

ProAlign applies OSINT across a far wider range of situations than most people imagine it fits, but the distinction that matters most is this: the firm does not hand clients raw data and leave them to make sense of it. It delivers intelligence, digital findings shaped by judgment, context, and a clear understanding of client priorities.

"Data is everywhere. Intelligence is the difference."

If you're an organization looking for a partner who treats OSINT as a tool for protection rather than exposure, learn more about ProAlign's approach to security intelligence.