Business security

5 things security executives need to know about insider threat

Insider threat is, unfortunately, an issue that has not yet received sufficient priority. According to the 2018 Deloitte-NASCIO Cybersecurity Study, CISOs’ top challenges remain “budget, talent and increasing cyber threats,” and to some, insider threat doesn’t even make the list of top-ten priorities.

Considering what’s at stake – and our 21st-century ability to see signs of, and ultimately prevent, insider threat – this is a phenomenon security executives can no longer afford to ignore. Specifically, leaders need to know these five things about insider threat:

1. Don’t underestimate the business threats that stem from within

Cybercrime is becoming increasingly common and expensive – the average number of breaches that occurred in 2018 (145) increased 11% from 2017, costing an average $13.3 million. And, according to Verizon’s 2019 Data Breach Investigation Report, more than one third of breaches that took place during November 2017-October 2018 involved internal actors.