The Importance of Safe Technology Environment for Employees and Employers in an Organization

Digital criminals and hackers are becoming more and more prevalent in business and society as the future continues to transpire. With these different people and systems threatening our personal or business finance and reputation, much needs to be done in order to ensure a safe technology environment for employees and employers.

The threats that are out there are sometimes as common as a company employee, and could stretch all the way to maintenance partners. Companies must embrace and improve their securities by monitoring their employees behavior and also implementing technologies to protect themselves against this. These threats are known “insiders, ” which are people who have direct access to confidential documents/information, and there are many different ways businesses can protect against them, which I will expand upon in this paper. With cybercriminal activity on the rise, and insider threats causing so much harm to businesses around the nation, the first step to be taken is for companies to better monitor their employees.

One thing that was talked about in the video about insider threats is how employees are often able to access information and systems that they are not authorized to. There are also types of threats where the user was authorized to the information, but misused it and left information vulnerable to attackers, whether intentionally or not. One of the most effective things an organization can do in order to mitigate this type of behavior is invest in a department solely focused on identifying users who misuse applications, particularly the people who have the most access to confidential information. Users who plan to release information wrongfully usually have some form of traceable wrongdoing through the companies servers, and that can be easily tacked and caught if a company has a system to monitor.

Certain organizations who are successful at monitoring use tactics like gathering passwords and usernames of all employees, and when they depart making sure they disable each one of the employees accounts and concealing any information that might be used against them. Even information that was readily available to employees and clients from many years past can be used to hack into present day applications, so investing in a department to stop this activity is extremely important. Although having a department to monitor is a very large step towards proper protection, there is even more companies can do like increasing technology and securities which also help immensely. Incorporating technology into business seems almost mandatory now, as three or four decades ago it was considered a rarity. With all we have learned about criminals impeding upon companies safety we know there are many ways in order to improve with technology. Identity and access management technologies are some of the most important parts of a company, as they are the backbone of keeping hackers and insider threats outside of their confidential information.

One thing that this video mentioned was making sure that organizations have a complete and comprehensive data management approach. Many companies have technologies that monitor the data they use, however they are not monitoring the data which is disposed of, and that can be an easy way insider threats gain access. In an article from crn. com titled “Top Five Technologies that Identify Against Insider Threats” it mentions one of the most effective ways at stopping leaked information, database activity monitoring. This system can be implemented to track database logs, and identify any changes that could pose a threat to the company. Certain rules and algorithms can be programmed into the system, which allows it to make customizable decisions due to the companies choosing. This can be extremely effective for companies that have certain weak areas of security, or if there is a common breach of security. This system will focus solely on monitoring whatever the company may choose, and can be updated continuously. Although technologies comparable to this are very expensive, the investment proves to be a good one with the time and money it will save from future hackers and threats. After looking at the many insider threats companies continue to face, the addition of security and technology is becoming more important and prevalent each day.

There is a lot to think about and consider when talking about the threats, but knowing there are solutions and steps you can take to protect yourself is the most important thing to take away. As mentioned, implementing a department to monitor employee behavior and also investing in technologies is going be extremely effective at stopping these threats. With the help of theses aspects companies are sure to identify threats much more quickly, and also save countless dollars on potential threats that have been stopped.

Overall understanding insider threats and how to minimize them is something that companies need to continue to emphasize, making society safer for everyone.