12 Important Facts About Insider Security Threats

The fundamentals matter the most when protecting an organization from insider threats, whether they are accidental or malicious, according to a new report from research and advisory firm Aite Group. The outcome of a data breach is the same, exposing an organization's data and impacting its bottom line through reputational damage and remediation efforts. Based on Aite's discussions with asset managers and global custodian service providers, the report, "Cybersecurity Insider: The Asset as Threat," finds that accidental events are undercounted primarily due to fear of reputational damage. The study, which also examines data from IBM, CERT, Advisen and other sources, reveals that financial institutions, in particular, face a multitude of information security challenges. These challenges range from a lack of policy and procedure adherence and poor access management controls, to a need to balance security with an organization's performance, keeping employees informed about cyber-security risks, and a talent shortage of security professionals. In many of these cases, it opens up new opportunities for managed security services companies to provide services around specific security tasks. Here are key takeaways from the report covering insider threats, protection methods and challenges.