What Are Insider Threats? Types and How to Stop Them

An insider threat is a security risk that comes from people who already have access to your systems, such as employees, contractors, or vendors, or from an outsider using a stolen employee password.

The four main types are malicious insiders, careless employees, third parties with access, and compromised accounts. Most can be prevented with access controls, endpoint protection, multi-factor authentication, and training. 

There are three troubling statistics from a recent report by Ponemon Institute that illustrate the importance of addressing this threat. Insider attacks are getting worse, taking longer to detect and becoming more extensive.

The report found that over the last two years:

• Insider incidents rose 44% over two years, according to the 2022 Ponemon report.
• In 2020, Microsoft reported that mobile devices made up about 60% of endpoints.
• The average cost of addressing insider threats has risen by 34%

It’s important for companies to understand what makes up an insider threat. That’s the first step towards mitigation.

4 Types of Insider Threats

If an insider leaks or exposes customer or employee data, it can count as a personal data breach under the Data Privacy Act (RA 10173). Serious cases must be reported to the National Privacy Commission within 72 hours. See what a company should do after a data breach. 

One reason that insider threats can be hard to detect is that there is not just one kind. Employees, vendors, and hackers can all perpetrate insider security breaches. To further complicate detection, some may be malicious and others accidental.

Here are the four main types of insider threats faced by company networks.

Malicious/Disgruntled Employee

A sales employee that is leaving the company may decide to take all their contacts with them. This is a malicious theft of company data.

Another example of this type of insider attack is a disgruntled employee. They may be upset with their manager who just fired them and decide to do the business harm. They could plant ransomware or make a deal with a hacker to give over their login credentials for cash.

Careless/Negligent Employee

Some insider threats are due to lazy or untrained employees. They don’t mean to cause a data breach but may accidentally share classified data on a non-secure platform. Then, they may also use a friend’s computer to access their business apps, being completely unaware of the security consequences.

3rd Party with Access to Your Systems

Outsiders with access to your network are also a very real concern. Contractors, freelancers, and vendors can all constitute an insider breach risk.

You need to ensure that these third parties are fully reviewed. Do this before you give them system access. You should also allow your IT partner to review them for any data security concerns.

Hacker That Compromises a Password

Compromised login credentials are one of the most dangerous types of insider threats. This has now become the #1 driver of data breaches around the world.

When a cybercriminal can access an employee’s login, that criminal becomes an “insider.” Your computer system reads them as the legitimate user.

Ways to Mitigate Insider Threats

Here are some of the best tactics for reducing insider threat risk:

Thorough Background Checks

When hiring new employees make sure you do a thorough background check. Malicious insiders will typically have red flags in their work history. You want to do the same with any vendors or contractors that will have access to your systems.

Endpoint Device Solutions

Mobile devices now make up about 60% of the endpoints in a company but many businesses aren’t using a solution to manage device access to resources.

Put an endpoint management solution in place to monitor device access. You can also use this to safelist devices and block unauthorized devices by default.

Multi-factor Authentication & Password Security

One of the best ways to fight credential theft is through multi-factor authentication. Hackers have a hard time getting past the 2nd factor. They rarely have access to a person’s mobile device or FIDO security key.

Couple this with password security. This includes things like:

• Requiring strong passwords in your cloud apps
• Using a business password manager
• Requiring unique passwords for all logins

If you use Microsoft 365, follow these Microsoft 365 data protection measures.

Employee Data Security Training

Training can help you mitigate the risk of a breach through carelessness. Train employees on proper data handling and security policies governing sensitive information. See how often employees should get cybersecurity training.

Network Monitoring on

Once someone has user access to your system, how can you catch them doing something wrong? You do this through intelligent network monitoring.

Use AI-enabled threat monitoring as this allows you to detect strange behaviors as soon as they happen. For example, someone downloading a large number of files or someone logging in from outside the country.

Remove access immediately when someone leaves. Use a digital offboarding checklist.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an insider threat? 

A security risk from someone with legitimate access to your systems, such as an employee, contractor, or vendor, or from an attacker using a stolen employee login. 

What are the 4 types of insider threats? 

Malicious or disgruntled employees, careless or negligent employees, third parties with system access, and attackers who compromise an employee’s password. 

How can businesses prevent insider threats? 

Run background checks, give staff only the access they need, use multi-factor authentication and endpoint protection, train employees, monitor the network, and remove access when people leave. 

Is an insider data leak a data breach? 

Yes. If personal data is exposed, it can be a personal data breach under the Data Privacy Act, and serious cases must be reported to the NPC within 72 hours. 

Need help stopping insider threats? 

CloudConsole sets up access controls, endpoint protection, MFA, and monitoring for Philippine businesses through our cybersecurity services. Schedule an IT security scan.