Elizabeth Leigh
Damian Harvey, country manager for Australia and New Zealand at Vormetric, said Australian information technology professionals have yet to become fully aware of the damage an insider threat could bring to their companies.
“We are still seeing organizations spend millions on perimeter defenses while neglecting to lock up their data or appropriately control access,†Harvey said Thursday.
“If a disaffected employee decides to steal IP or customer data for their own gain, it can be almost impossible to find out until it’s too late without the proper security controls,†he added.
Harvey’s remarks followed the release of Vormetric-commissioned analysis from Ovum Research, which found that 91 percent of 183 Australian IT professionals and business managers view insider threats as a real and significant form of cyber attack.
According to the Australian Insider Threat Report, 48 percent of respondents have companies that plan to increase their budget for self-defense strategies, while 37 percent believe mandatory compliance would push companies to spend more on such programs.
The report says intrusions and data theft from within could come in the form of a privileged user using his credentials to exfiltrate sensitive information, while another type of insider threat could come from an external actor using stolen access codes to gain unlawful entry or control.
“From the data, it’s clear that organizations are also struggling with new technologies like cloud, mobile and big data as they seek to protect themselves from insider threats,â€Â Ovum Research Director Andrew Kellett said.
