How to bypass internal data breaches

Internal Data breaches are happening way too frequently than expected. It’s a form of “being stabbed in the back.”  In cyber security, external data breaches mainly involve hackers, cyber espionage and crime organizations, or internal data breaches done by employees from inside the organization. According to Clearswift Insider Threat Index 2017, 42% of security incidents come from inside the organization. 

What is Internal Data Breach? 

A data breach exposes confidential, sensitive, or protected information to an unauthorized person. Files and personal information are viewed and shared without permission.

Any type of organization is at risk of data breach. From multi-nationals to start-ups and individuals. And anyone can put others at risk if this information is not protected. 

According to reports and statistics, Internal data leak is on the rise in terms of frequency and cost to any organization. However, many organizations trust their employees blindly and do not take any measures to improve their procedures or prevent this insider threat. 

It’s time for organizations to turn their information security focus inward. 

According to the Ponemon Institute’s “Cost of a Data Breach” Study, along with hackers, malicious insiders are the leading cause of data breaches. What’s more, incidents caused by insiders tend to have higher costs than other breaches.

The most striking figure is the increase in the frequency and the cost of incidents of this kind: over the last two years, the number of incidents has increased 47%. What’s more, a staggering 60% of organizations suffer over 30 incidents per year.

There are different types of insiders, and information exfiltrated differs from one organization to another.

If you are working or interested in Cyber Security, this must not be the first time reading an article about insider threats. 

Ways you can complement your standard security controls

Most organizations already have primary and standard security control. Some have already implemented the best breed DLP solutions and restricted the use of external devices. But users can capture sensitive and confidential information through their smartphones. 

It’s challenging nowadays to prevent employees and contractors from using their smartphones in the office, no matter how severe restrictions are. 

However, to each identified problem, there is a solution. In DataPatrol, we have the screen watermark solution, which is always visible and shows the identification of the logged-in user that you can set up granularly. With the screen watermark, organizations get to remind insiders that all of this data is confidential and belongs to them. It also helps track any leaks by utilizing the watermarks on the screens.

Internal data breach is a serious threat to all types of organizations no matter how careful they are. It can lead to scandals if it is not treated properly and degrading their brand image in front of their partners, customers and network.