Protect Your Business from Insider Threats

Protect Your Business from Insider Threats: Safeguarding Against Insider Risks

You might think your business is safe from cyber threats because you’ve invested in cybersecurity solutions. But what about threats that come from inside your business? Are you as protected from the risks posed by your own employees, vendors, or even yourself? Protecting your business from insider threats is just as important as defending against external cyber risks.

In this blog, we’ll explain types of insider threats, how to spot warning signs, and the steps you can take to prevent insider attacks and protect your business by protecting your business against insider threats.

What Are Insider Threats?

Insider threats come from people within your organization who, either intentionally or by accident, cause harm to your business. Protecting your business from insider threats is critical, as these risks can lead to data breaches, financial loss, and damage to your reputation.

Here are some common examples of insider security risks:

1. Data Theft: Someone from within your company may steal sensitive business information, like customer details or company secrets, for personal gain or to cause harm. They might do this by downloading files without permission or physically taking company devices.

   Example: A hospital worker steals patient records and sells them on the dark web.

2. Sabotage: A disgruntled employee or someone working for a competitor might intentionally damage your business. This could involve deleting files, planting malware, or changing passwords to lock you out of critical systems.

   Example: An upset employee at a café messes with the coffee machine, causing it to malfunction and resulting in lost sales.

3. Unauthorized Access: Sometimes, employees or hackers gain access to sensitive company data that they shouldn’t have. This can happen on purpose or by accident.

   Example: An employee uses their login to access confidential information and then leaks it to competitors.

4. Negligence & Mistakes: Insider threats also happen when people make careless mistakes. While errors can be reduced through cybersecurity training, negligence requires stronger enforcement.

   Example: An employee clicks a malicious link, downloading malware onto the system, or they lose a laptop with sensitive data on it.

5. Sharing Login Details: If employees share their passwords with others, they open the door to all kinds of cybersecurity risks. It’s like giving someone the keys to your house—you don’t know how they’ll use them.

   Example: An employee logs into their work email on a friend’s laptop and forgets to sign out. Later, the friend’s laptop is hacked, giving the attacker access to company information.                                                                                                                 

How to Spot Insider Threats

Protecting your business from insider threats requires vigilance. Watch for these warning signs to catch potential insider cyber threats early:

• Unusual access patterns: Someone starts accessing information that isn’t relevant to their job.
• Large data transfers: An employee downloads a massive amount of company data suddenly.
• Frequent access requests: Someone keeps asking for permission to access sensitive information they don’t need for their role.
• Using personal devices: Employees using unapproved personal devices to access confidential data.
• Turning off security: Someone disables antivirus software or other security tools.
• Strange behaviour: A usually reliable employee suddenly misses deadlines or seems overly stressed.

                                                                   

How to Protect Your Business

Here are five steps to strengthen your defences against insider cybersecurity threats:

1. Strong Passwords & Multi-Factor Authentication: Encourage employees to use complex passwords and enable two-factor authentication whenever possible.
2. Control Access: Make sure employees can only access the data and systems they need for their jobs. Regularly review and update these access privileges.
3. Train Employees: Educate your team on the risks of insider threats and teach them how to practice good cybersecurity habits.
4. Back Up Data: Regularly back up your important data so you can recover if something goes wrong.
5. Have a Response Plan: Create an incident response plan that outlines what to do if an insider threat incident happens.

 

We Can Help You

Protecting your business from insider threats can feel overwhelming, but you don’t have to do it alone. An IT service provider like us can help you put strong security measures in place.

Contact us, and we’ll help you monitor for internal cyber threats and respond effectively if an issue arises.

For more updates follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook.