AwareGO | Malicious Insider Risk Awareness: Report Unusual Behavior
For Insider Risk Awareness Month we are publishing our Insider Risk videos for free to help raise awareness. If your organization would benefit from this type of training, go to www.awarego.com to find out more about our cybersecurity training videos and human risk management solutions.
When an employee is responsible for a security breach or a data leak, it is called an insider threat or insider risk because it originates from within the workplace. The reasons behind the individual’s actions could be accidental or because of negligence, but in some unfortunate instances it is malicious.
Some of the indicators of insider risk we might notice is a user who is gathering valuable data without authorization, downloading, and copying from data storage, or taking sensitive information home. They are also more likely to work outside regular working hours, use unauthorized equipment such as cameras and USB drives, ask other employees for their credentials, and access data that has little relation to their present role.
Other signs to look out for are:
• Disgruntlement – Dissatisfied employees and employees who have frequent conflicts with co-workers or supervisors are more likely to conduct an insider attack. Other signs of disgruntlement could be an increasingly declining performance, an increase in mistakes, general tardiness, and missing deadlines.
• Unusual enthusiasm – This could include staying late without being asked, keeping odd working hours, and trying to perform outside the scope of normal duties. This might be an attempt to gain access to sensitive data by a corporate spy.
• Unexplained changes in financial circumstances – Big purchases or suddenly being able to pay off debts without having any obvious additional income sources could be an indicator that someone is profiting from selling sensitive information.
• Unusually frequent trips and vacations – This could be a sign of changes in financial circumstances or a sign that an employee might be working for a competing company and is transferring sensitive data to them.
If you witness some of these indicators or warning signs from a co-worker or former co-worker, you should report it immediately.
Bear in mind that not all insiders are malicious. Some simply make mistakes, like falling for phishing emails or being negligent with security measures. We must trust and respect our co-workers, but at the same time, we should stay vigilant to protect our workplace.
#insiderriskawareness #insiderthreatawareness