Privileged users are an essential part of any organization. However, with access to commercial secrets and to the most vulnerable parts of the corporate network, they can pose high risks to your corporate cybersecurity. For this reason, the more privileges users have, the closer they need to be monitored. Furthermore, privileged user monitoring (PUM) is a requirement of multiple laws, regulations, and data security standards including NIST 800-53, GDPR, and HIPAA.

While it’s difficult to imagine our business lives without USB devices, each USB connection can pose a serious risk to an organization’s security. Attackers can infect USB devices with malware that attacks your corporate system once a user connects an infected device. Such attacks can damage your infrastructure or machines and result in the theft or compromise of sensitive data.

The insider story, whether it is a disgruntled or negligent employee, is one that is familiar to many organizations. The 2020 Securonix Insider Threat Report found that 60% of the insider threat cases they dealt with involved a “flight risk” employee, or an individual that is getting ready to leave their employment.

Insider incidents, whether intentional or unintentional, can harm your organization in the form of financial and reputational losses, compliance violations and fines, and operational disruptions. What can you do to avoid this? How can you protect yourself against insider threats? The solution is simple: fortify your organization’s security processes with a carefully executed insider threat strategy.

Elizabeth Harz, CEO of Veriato, gave an interview to ISMG at this year’s RSA Conference in San Francisco. In it, Elizabeth covers the challenges of maintaining data security in the remote or hybrid workforce environment and the rising cost of data breaches. She also discusses some of the tools and solutions and can help businesses better manage their cybersecurity challenges.

The people closest to your business can sometimes cause the most damage. Yet while top-secret data leaks are headline news today, most insider threats are well-intentioned people who just screw up.

U.S. officials confirmed last week that a member of the military photographed and uploaded more than 50 classified documents to a Discord server and other social media sites, again reminding us of the danger insider threats can present to any organization. According to the Associated Press, a member of the U.S. Air National Guard was arrested last week in Massachusetts in connection with the leak.