What is Phishing?

A phishing attack is a type of cybersecurity threat that targets users directly through email, text, or direct messages. During one of these scams, the attacker will pose as a trusted contact to steal data like logins, account numbers, and credit card information.

The motivations for such malicious behaviour are usually financial. According to the 2020 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, 86% of the 3,950 breaches were financially motivated.

While email remains the most critical communications tool for business, it also, unfortunately, makes it the top threat vector, with the volume and sophistication of attacks ever increasing. There is a continuing severity and cost of phishing campaigns as a problem, and it is imperative for organisations to understand this phishing in order to combat email security issues.

What are Insider Threats?

An insider threat is a type of cyberattack originating from an individual who works for an organisation or has authorised access to its networks or systems. An insider threat could be a current or former employee, consultant, board member, or business partner and could be intentional, unintentional, or malicious.

Typically, an insider threat in cybersecurity refers to an individual using their authorised access to an organisation’s data and resources to harm the company’s equipment, information, networks, and systems. It includes corruption, espionage, degradation of resources, sabotage, terrorism, and unauthorised information disclosure. It can also be a starting point for cyber criminals to launch malware or ransomware attacks.

Insider threats are increasingly costly for organisations. The Ponemon Institute’s 2020 Cost of Insider Threats research found that this form of attack cost an average of $11.45 million and that 63% of insider threats result from employee negligence.