While most people would think that the risk of an Insider Threat is something that only government organizations (espionage) or large companies that are involved in research and development should worry about, we are finding more and more that many of our clients in numerous sectors are waking up to the potential impact of this threat. The news is full of examples of the significant impact that this had on businesses around the world.
A recent article on the site “SecurityBrief” from Australia reported that “a 2022 study conducted by Proofpoint found that 67% of companies globally are experiencing between 21 and more than 40 insider-related incidents per year. This data point has been increasing steadily—from 60% in 2020 and 53% in 2018. Organizations around the world are now spending an average of US $15.38 million to resolve insider threats every year.” What this points to is that almost all companies are more likely to fall victim to a threat actor from inside their organization, yet how much effort is being put forth to understanding and counteracting this threat?
It is critical to understand that it is a company’s own employees, or contractors, that have the most access to their cherished information and data, this is a human-centric problem. In general, the insider threat for organizations can be grouped into two main categories:
Careless or Negligent Insiders: In most cases, this type of incident arises due to poor security hygiene, such as weak credentials or an errant click on a malicious link or attachment.
Malicious, Compromised or Criminal Insiders: Those in this category can take many forms. They may have been incentivized by criminals to steal or leak data or act out of frustration or malice towards the organization for personal reasons, or they may have been approached and compromised by Hostile Nation Actors.
Whatever the motivation, the threat is real to organizations at all levels. Preventing insider threats requires a multi-faceted approach.
Here are some effective strategies:
- Robust Hiring Practices: Conduct thorough background checks and psychological assessments during the hiring process to identify potential risks.
- Access Control: Implement the principle of least privilege (PoLP) to ensure employees only have access to the information necessary for their job functions.
- Regular Training and Awareness: Provide ongoing training on security policies, recognizing insider threats, and reporting suspicious behavior.
- Security Clearance Aftercare: Should your organization be one that requires their employees to hold a security clearance then you should have a robust Aftercare Program that is aimed at inspecting an individual’s continued reliability and loyalty.
- Monitoring and Analytics: Use monitoring tools to analyze user behavior and identify anomalies that could indicate malicious intent.
- Incident Response Plan: Develop a clear incident response plan that includes procedures for handling insider threats and communication strategies.
- Encourage Reporting: Foster a culture of openness where employees feel safe reporting concerns without fear of retaliation.
- Exit Procedures: Implement strict offboarding procedures to revoke access to systems and data when employees leave the organization.
- Behavioral Analysis: Use machine learning and AI to detect unusual patterns in user activity that could signal an insider threat.
- Regular Security Audits: Conduct periodic audits to evaluate the effectiveness of security measures and identify vulnerabilities.
By combining these strategies, organizations can create a more secure environment and reduce the risk of insider threats. It is not a matter of “if” you will be hit with an Insider Threat, it is likely already there.
