Incident Response, TDR

Insider threat cases on the rise, IC3 warns

The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is warning organizations of a rise in insider threat cases.

Disgruntled and former employees have been increasingly engaging in computer network exploitation and disruption, according to a Tuesday announcement.

The FBI has investigated several cases in which the employees “used their access to destroy data, steal proprietary software, obtain customer information, purchase unauthorized goods and services using customer accounts, and gain a competitive edge at a new company,” the announcement indicates.

The employees used cloud storage websites and personal email accounts, as well as remote desktop protocol software installed prior to termination, to carry out the data theft. Additionally, the employees have attempted extortion for financial gain via distributed denial-of-service attacks and modifying and restricting access to company websites.

The cost of these incidents ranged from $5,000 to $3 million, according to the announcement. 

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