Insider Threats
Insider threats originate from individuals within your organization (employees, contractors, or business partners) who have authorized access to your systems and data. They can be intentionally malicious or unintentionally negligent.
Types of insider threats
Malicious insiders deliberately steal data, sabotage systems, or sell access to outside attackers, often motivated by financial gain, revenge, or ideology. Negligent insiders accidentally cause breaches through carelessness: falling for phishing, misconfiguring systems, or losing devices. Compromised insiders have their credentials stolen by external attackers who then use legitimate access to move through the organization undetected.
Warning signs
Unusual access patterns: accessing systems or data outside normal job duties. Large data downloads or transfers to external locations. Attempts to bypass security controls. Working unusual hours without clear business reasons. Expressed dissatisfaction or known grievances. Unexplained financial changes. Reluctance to take vacation (maintaining control over hidden activities).
Detection and prevention
Apply the principle of least privilege: users should only have access to what they need. Deploy User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) to detect anomalous activity. Monitor data loss prevention (DLP) alerts. Conduct regular access reviews and promptly revoke access for departing employees. Create a culture of security awareness. Establish clear policies for acceptable use and consequences for violations. Set up proper offboarding procedures.
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