Majority of Cyber Attacks Launched by Company Insiders

According to figures released by IBM, nearly 60 per cent of all cyber attacks in 2015 were launched by “company insiders,” based upon data gathered from 8,000 of their clients’ devices. Though industry experts have warned for years that a company’s employees may inadvertently make systems vulnerable, IBM found that 44.5 per cent of attacks were, in fact, malicious.

It’s important to note that IBM defined an “insider” as anyone who had either physical or remote access to a company’s assets. While this would certainly include employees, it would also include business partners, contractors and vendors.

While insider threats can be difficult to detect, businesses can still work to prevent them. Above all, it’s important to have a cyber security plan in place—one that manages passwords in a mindful way and protects shared documents.

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