Insider Security Threats: A Growing Concern for Finance Corporations and How to Address Them

In an effort to fight back, many cybersecurity teams focus mostly on the threats coming from outside of their digital wall. However, the threat from within should not be overlooked—insider threats pose a significant and growing concern for finance corporations. According to the most recent Verizon Data Breach report, 68 percent of breaches involved a human element, which includes malicious and inadvertent participation.

Add in the rise of hybrid work arrangements, disbursed cloud and branch environments, and increasingly complex networking—not to mention the rising sophistication of cyberattacks—and financial institutions are facing a perfect storm of security challenges.

These realities require organizations to create a holistic approach to security that robustly addresses both internal and external threats. The consequences of not doing so can be severe—beyond the immediate financial losses resulting from data breaches or system compromises, financial institutions can face significant reputational damage.

Here’s what your financial institution needs to know about the realities of insider threats and how their security teams can be positioned to thwart them.

Malicious insiders are employees or contractors who intentionally cause harm to their employer’s operations or enable external actors to do so through unauthorized access or the manipulation of systems and data. This threat is particularly dangerous as these users typically have increased knowledge of where sensitive systems and data reside as well as what security measures are in place to protect them.

These threats can come from:

• Current employees seeking revenge or financial gain.
• Former employees with lingering access rights.
• Contractors or vendors with unneeded privileged access.

While it’s easy to think that “it couldn’t happen to me,” alarmingly, 35 percent of data breaches involve insiders.

Careless insiders, also known as negligent insiders, also pose a significant risk. Even though their actions are not intentional, their access to or knowledge of systems can accelerate an attack by weakening or bypassing security controls.

The causes behind these threats are simple, but still devastating:

• Lack of awareness of access rights, risk, or the impact of their actions
• Negligence in following policies around things like data sharing or password reuse
• Inadequate training around proper data handling or storage

Even employee error can be a big risk: According to one study, 32 percent of data breaches involved employee error.

Cyberattackers frequently target privileged users—and for good reason.

These users hold elevated access rights to infrastructure, applications, and systems. Usually, they sit in executive roles or are involved in system or network administration. Without proper control and oversight, obtaining access to these users’ credentials can lead to significant disruption or damage.

Data leakage refers to the unauthorized release or disclosure of sensitive information. Adding to the risk, data leakage often goes unnoticed until significant damage has been done, making early detection and prevention crucial for protecting sensitive financial information.

While the path can vary from email and cloud storage to lost devices and removable media, the potential impacts remain the same: financial loss, regulatory fines, and reputational damage.

Unauthorized access occurs when an attacker gains access to systems or data without proper authorization.

The result of weak passwords, social engineering attacks (e.g., phishing), and password sharing, this threat can lead to severe consequences, including data theft, system compromise, and potential financial losses for the organization.

Like data leakage, unauthorized access often goes undetected for extended periods, allowing attackers to have time to explore systems and steal sensitive information before being discovered.

Fortunately, security teams have a range of proven controls to help them address various cybersecurity risks. 

Here are the most effective strategies that should be in place at your financial institution:

One of the foundational elements of a strong security posture is strict access control. This involves implementing the least privilege principle, where users are granted only the minimum levels of access necessary to perform their job functions.

Take access control to the next level by leveraging multi-factor authentication which adds an extra layer of security by requiring users to provide multiple forms of verification before gaining access to systems or data.

Finally, regularly reviewing and adjusting user permissions is crucial, particularly when employees change roles or leave the organization. Deprovisioning accounts promptly upon termination prevents former employees from accessing sensitive information.

Effective cybersecurity relies heavily on having accurate and timely threat intelligence. 

This data involves having awareness of three key areas:

• Threat actor profiles: Understanding the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) of potential adversaries allows organizations to anticipate and prepare for potential attacks.
• Vulnerability information: Staying informed about newly discovered vulnerabilities enables teams to prioritize patching and implementing targeted mitigation strategies.

Anomaly detection patterns: Identifying unusual patterns of behavior in their network can help teams detect potential threats before they escalate into full-blown attacks.

The most dynamic and robust element of any cybersecurity program is the organization’s employees. This means that comprehensive and regular security awareness training is essential to educate employees on best practices and how to recognize and report suspicious activities.

Whether through simulated phishing exercises or threat scenario simulations, testing and reinforcing an employee’s responses is key to allowing your financial institution to be equipped to handle evolving threats, whether malicious or accidental.

xMDR services provide financial institutions with early identification of potential risks, paired with a quick response and rapid containment.

Leading xMDR solutions, like those provided by Cipher, are proven to minimize the potential damage or scale of a leak using advanced analytics and machine learning algorithms to spot subtle patterns that may indicate a threat. Incident response teams can then deploy in near real-time and swiftly contain the threat.

Financial institutions have to balance many operational and security requirements, which requires them to provide always-on connectivity to customers while also meeting strict regulatory standards.

Traditionally, securing the edge of their networks from external threats has been the priority. However, attackers’ persistence is only matched by their creativity, driving them to find new ways to bypass these controls in order to meet their goals. Unfortunately, insider threats are playing a growing role in their attacks.

That’s why we believe that financial institutions must adopt a comprehensive approach that combines strict access controls, cyber threat intelligence, security awareness training, and managed detection and response strategies to protect their assets from threats, inside and out.

Ready to stop these threats before they strike your financial institution?

Now is the time to schedule a meeting with a Cipher expert to get tailored guidance and solutions to enhance your cybersecurity.

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