With the most expensive time of the year looming, several reports are currently doing the rounds which suggest that the ‘grooming’ of employees by criminal gangs is growing faster than ever. Why? Because criminals intent on commiting ID and financial fraud are realizing that it is easier to get information from insiders than it is to hack into networks from the outside.
Some experts even warn of KGB-style recruitment tactics where targets are identified and groomed over a period of years in order to provide an effective and reliable source of sensitive data from banks, call centers and other organizations that hold our most private information.
For some organizations, regular vetting of employees can help identify potential data leaks, but the main worry has to be the ease with which the majority of staff can access confidential records and then copy them off the network through local PC connections such as USB and wi-fi ports. Only when these ports are secure against misuse can the company have some confidence that network users are not putting their customers’ data at risk.
While ID theft is well publicized, with several high-profile prosecutions now underway, it seems some individuals will always be susceptible to the lure of cash for information. And when there are gifts to be padi for, what’s stopping your staff from giving in to temptation?
