Insider threats involve trusted users misusing authorized access, causing data loss, fraud, disruption, or exposure of sensitive systems and records.
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Insider threat is the risk that someone with authorized access—such as an employee, contractor, partner, or former staff member—misuses that access, deliberately or accidentally. It can involve stealing sensitive data, abusing privileges, sabotaging systems, exposing information through mishandling, or enabling an attacker after an account is compromised. The defining issue is that activity may resemble legitimate work.
Security teams reduce this risk with least-privilege access, separation of sensitive duties, strong offboarding, and timely removal of unused accounts and credentials. Audit logs and access monitoring can help identify unusual downloads, privilege changes, or access outside a person’s role, while data-loss controls limit unauthorized movement of sensitive files. Monitoring should respect privacy and applicable employment or data-protection requirements. When suspicious activity is identified, response may include preserving logs, containing the account, reviewing accessed data, and coordinating security, legal, and human-resources processes.
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Ex-employee claims this 'meets the definition of an insider threat'
New research details how the increasing integration of AI agents into businesses is making it easier than ever for insiders - malicious or otherwise - to put sensitive data at risk. The post Your AI agent could become your biggest insider threat appeared first on CyberScoop.
Rethinking Insider Threats in the Age of Autonomous SystemsAI systems are no longer passive tools. They make decisions, execute multi-step workflows and access sensitive data repositories with minimal human intervention. They begin to resemble something security leaders understand very well yet are ill-equipped to manage in a digital form: insider risk.
Startup Exits Stealth Targeting Insider Risk, Shadow AI and GenAI Data ExposureCybersecurity startup Jazz has raised $61 million with an AI-driven approach to data loss prevention. Its platform deploys agent investigators that analyze data context, users, systems and processes to detect insider threats and risky AI usage more accurately than legacy rule-based tools.
AI-based assistants or "agents" -- autonomous programs that have access to the user's computer, files, online services and can automate virtually any task -- are growing in popularity with developers and IT workers. But as so many eyebrow-raising headlines over the past few weeks have shown, these powerful and assertive new tools are rapidly shifting the security priorities for organizations, while blurring the lines between data and code, trusted co-worker and insider threat, ninja hacker and novice code jockey.
The call is coming from inside the house opinion Maybe everything is all about timing, like the time (this week) America's lead cyber-defense agency sounded the alarm on insider threats after it came to light that its senior official uploaded sensitive documents to ChatGPT.…
CISA urges action against insider threats with publication of a new infographic offering strategies to manage risks
Where the shiny new FOMO object collides with insider-threat reality AI agents arrived in Davos this week with the question of how to secure them - and prevent agents from becoming the ultimate insider threat - taking center stage during a panel discussion on cyber threats.…
Lock 'em down interview AI agents represent the new insider threat to companies in 2026, according to Palo Alto Networks Chief Security Intel Officer Wendi Whitmore, and this poses several challenges to executives tasked with securing the expected surge in autonomous agents.…
Hackers impersonate IT pros with deepfakes, fake resumes, and stolen identities, turning hiring pipelines into insider threats. Huntres sLabs explains how stronger vetting and access controls help stop these threats. [...]
Security analyst Michael Robinson spent 14 months mining thousands of legal filings to uncover who malicious insiders really are, how they operate, and why traditional detection models keep missing them.
The FinWise breach shows that when insider threats strike, encryption is the last line of defense. Penta Security's D.AMO platform unites encryption, key management, and access control to keep sensitive data secure. [...]
AI is transforming cybersecurity—from detecting phishing and insider threats to accelerating response. See how Waziuh, the open-source XDR and SIEM, integrates AI to turn raw security data into actionable insights and smarter threat hunting. [...]
Threat actors claiming to represent the Medusa ransomware gang tempted a BBC correspondent to become an insider threat by offering a significant amount of money. [...]
Sumitomo's Sawant on the Internal Risks of Autonomous AI AgentsAutonomous AI agents are shifting the nature of insider threats by operating at machine speed and mimicking human-level access and privilege. These synthetic entities can act independently within systems and carry out actions traditionally reserved for human users, introducing new security risks.
Researchers Say AI Bots Blur Lines Between Identity, Consent and Cyber DefenseAs generative AI programs continue to evolve, they are introducing new threats to the modern workplace. Digital twins, once confined to industrial systems, now enable hyper-realistic copies of actual employees to mimic vocal patterns, behaviors and even pick up on decision-making trends.
Ransomware, Quantum Computing, Geopolitics, Gen AI and More on the AgendaInfosecurity Europe is set to return June 3 to London. Hot topics at this year's event include everything from quantum computing, geopolitics and artificial intelligence, to supply chain attacks, insider threats and the cybercrime juggernaut that continues to be ransomware.
Ransomware, Quantum Computing, Geopolitics, GenAI and More on the AgendaInfosecurity Europe is set to return June 3 to London. Hot topics at this year's event include everything from quantum computing, geopolitics and artificial intelligence, to supply chain attacks, insider threats and the cybercrime juggernaut that continues to be ransomware.