Insider threat management remains a top priority for organizations as insider incidents rise. Insider threats encompass a broad spectrum of malicious activities, from data theft and espionage to fraud and workplace violence. To counter these risks, organizations are enhancing their insider risk management programs by leveraging advanced technologies and whole-person analytical approaches.
This article, derived from a companion webinar and white paper, explores the evolving insider threat landscape. It examines industry survey insights on perceived risks and program effectiveness, while exploring key technologies and differentiators among modern counter-insider threat (C-InT) solutions. It also shares the advantages of whole person insider threat management, along with expert recommendations on migrating to this proactive approach.
Insider Threat Challenges and Perceptions
Insiders have legitimate access to sensitive resources, making threat detection difficult. They can exploit their privileges and typically inflict substantial harm before being discovered. Compounding these challenges, many employment and privacy regulations limit how organizations can monitor insider activity, necessitating legal consultation and well-defined policies before instituting a whole-person, counter-insider threat (C-InT) program.
A recent Cybersecurity Insiders survey of over 400 cybersecurity professionals reveals a growing concern over insider threats.¹ Seventy-one percent of organizations feel vulnerable, with a third reporting significant risk exposure. Many respondents believe their insider threat programs are only nominally effective.
Traditionally, organizations have relied on security controls across identity, physical access, endpoints, networks, and cloud environments to detect insiders. However, a whole person approach extends beyond technical indicators to incorporate behavioral data sources such as human resources records, legal data, and social media activity. The same survey indicated that approximately half of organizations are also incorporating behavioral data sources, such as legal data, human resources data, and publicly available information (PAI), into their insider threat programs.
Conventional Insider Threat Technologies
C-InT solutions primarily detect threats by analyzing access violations, data leakage, anomalous user behavior, and unauthorized activity across physical, identity, endpoint, and network layers. Security tools, including SIEM and IAM systems, are often employed to enhance visibility and support user and entity behavior analytics (UEBA).
According to a recent QKS-Group market report², key capabilities in C-InT solutions include user and device monitoring, UEBA, extended detection and response (XDR), security automation, audit and reporting, and dashboard analytics. UEBA enables organizations to detect anomalies in user behavior that could indicate insider threats, such as privilege abuse, unauthorized data access, or application misuse.
C-InT tooling includes varying pre-defined and custom analytics and dashboarding capabilities to facilitate monitoring, documentation, and incident response. Workflow automation further enhances security operations by streamlining alert handling, investigative analysis, and incident response.
Responding to Threats and Leveraging AI Detection
C-InT solutions offer manual, semi-automated, and automated response mechanisms to mitigate threats in real time. Automated responses can disable accounts, block devices, or quarantine suspicious files, enhancing security teams’ efficiency. AI and machine learning (ML) are increasingly leveraged to reduce related alerts and filter out false positives. They can identify patterns indicative of insider risk at great speed; however, AI-driven approaches can lack transparency, raising concerns about potential biases and misclassifications.
Predictive analytics enables organizations to model risk indicators and behavioral trends to preemptively identify potential threats – activities of persons on the critical path to insider threat.³ While traditional insider risk management primarily reacts to security incidents, predictive modeling facilitates proactive intervention.
Whole Person Risk Assessment: A Paradigm Shift
Whole person insider threat management integrates behavioral data with technical indicators to enhance predictive risk assessment. Behavioral data sources include HR performance evaluations, law enforcement records, financial risk indicators, and social media activity. By incorporating these diverse data sets, organizations can develop a holistic risk profile of potential insider threats.
According to Frank L. Greitzer, Ph.D., chief behavioral scientist at Cogility, traditional insider threat detection methods often alert security teams only after an attack is underway. However, by incorporating behavioral data, organizations can identify early warning signs—providing opportunities for intervention before an incident occurs. Whole person risk assessment enables analysts to recognize subtle red flags along the critical pathway to an insider threat.⁴
For whole person insider threat management to be incorporated into an existing program, behavioral data acquisition, privacy compliance, and analysis consistency must be managed to ensure ethical and legal compliance. Once achieved, how can organizations effectively modernize their insider threat program to take advantage of a whole-person approach. Frank L. Greitzer offers guidance towards implementing a whole person insider threat approach:
- Expand Stakeholder Involvement: Engage HR, legal, behavioral scientists, and employee representatives alongside security teams to develop a comprehensive C-InT strategy.⁵
2. Define Key Insider Risks: Identify not only severe threats but also concerning behaviors that indicate an increased risk of insider activity.
3. Develop Insider Risk Assessment Models: Map potential risk indicators (PRIs) and assign weighted ratings to refine risk assessments. Leveraging existing PRI taxonomies, such as SOFIT (Socio-technical and Organizational Factors for Insider Threats) can help streamline the process.⁶
4. Refine Risk Models with Expert Feedback: Continuously calibrate assessment models using insights from insider threat analysts and behavioral experts.
5. Assess Data Sources and Compliance Requirements: Identify and document available technical and behavioral data sources, ensuring compliance with privacy regulations.
6. Establish Monitoring and Response Guidelines: Develop standardized templates and procedures for insider risk assessment and response.
7. Evaluate Program Costs and Effectiveness: Measure current insider threat program performance to identify gaps and justify investments in enhanced capabilities.
8. Assess Implementation Trade-offs: Consider operational costs, technological requirements, and integration challenges when transitioning to a whole person approach.
9. Estimate Program Impact and ROI: Assess improvements in risk mitigation, operational efficiency, and security outcomes resulting from whole person risk management.
10. Secure Executive Buy-in and Execute: Present key findings and performance metrics to gain stakeholder commitment and drive implementation forward.
Modernizing Insider Threat Management
As insider threats continue to evolve, organizations must modernize their C-InT programs by incorporating continuous behavioral monitoring, AI-driven analytics, predictive modeling, and automated response workflows. A whole person approach shifts insider threat management from reactive detection to proactive risk assessment, helping organizations protect assets, mitigate risks, and foster a secure workplace.
Now is the time to transition to a forward-thinking, whole person insider threat strategy to enhance security resilience and safeguard against emerging threats.
For further insights, refer to the original webinar or white paper.
Acknowledgments: The author would like to thank Frank Greitzer, Ph.D. (Cogility Software), Holger Schulze (Cybersecurity Insiders), and QKS-Group for their contributions
References:
- 2024 Insider Threat survey by Cybersecurity Insiders n=413
- 2024 QKS-Group SPARK Matrix™: Insider Risk Management
- Shaw, E. & Sellers, L. (2015). Application of the critical-path method to evaluate insider risks. Studies in Intelligence, 59(2), 41-48
- Adapted from: Greitzer et al. (2018). https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8424651
- Intelligence and National Security Alliance (INSA), Human Resources and Insider Threat Mitigation: A Powerful Pairing, September 2020 – INSA White Paper
- SOFIT; Greitzer, Pearl, Leuong, and Becker. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8424651
