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Insider Threat

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Encyclopedia of Security and Emergency Management

Definition

Insider threat refers to one or more individuals with authorized access to critical facilities, materials, or information who could attempt unauthorized removal or sabotage or who could aid in an external adversary to do so.

Introduction

While physical security is often perceived as guards, gates, and guns, all infrastructure security events have a human dimension. Any individual with authorized access to or knowledge of a site has the potential to play a role – positive or negative – in a security event. In most cases, this human dimension manifests in how personnel play a positive role in preventing, detecting, and responding to security events. In other cases, however, personnel play a negative role and facilitate security events through a lack of awareness, negligence, or unintentional acts. In extreme cases, individuals cause security events by committing intentional and malicious acts against critical facilities, materials, or information. These individuals could be anyone...

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References

  • Bunn, M., & Sagan, S. (2014). A worst practices guide to insider threats: Lessons from past mistakes. Cambridge, MA: American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

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Further Reading

  • Bunn, M., & Sagan, S. (Eds.). (2017). Insider threats. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.

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  • Cappelli, D., Moore, A., & Trzeciak, T. (2012). The CERT® guide to insider threats: How to prevent, detect, and respond to information technology crimes (theft, sabotage, fraud). Upper Saddle River: Addison-Wesley.

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  • Hoffman, B., Meyer, C., Schwarz, B., & Duncan, J. (1990). Insider crime: The threat the nuclear facilities and programs. Santa Monica: RAND.

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Correspondence to Adam D. Williams .

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Williams, A.D., Abbott, S.N., Littlefield, A.C. (2019). Insider Threat. In: Shapiro, L., Maras, MH. (eds) Encyclopedia of Security and Emergency Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69891-5_156-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69891-5_156-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-69891-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-69891-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Law and CriminologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Insider Threat
    Published:
    27 July 2019

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69891-5_156-2

  2. Original

    Insider Threat
    Published:
    23 February 2019

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69891-5_156-1