HR professionals face a growing challenge: protecting sensitive company data and preventing insider threats. As remote and globally distributed teams become the norm, the risk of internal security breaches increases, making it more important than ever to have strong, proactive prevention strategies in place.
Background checks are a powerful tool for insider threat prevention, equipping you with credible insights to identify potential risks and mitigate them effectively, both before hiring and throughout employment.
In this article, we explore how background checks help protect your organisation from insider threats, especially in a global, remote-first world.
What are insider threats?
Insider threats refer to the risk that an organisation's security, confidentiality, and integrity face from individuals who have authorised access to sensitive information or systems, such as employees, contractors, or partners. These risks may result from intentional actions, such as sabotage or theft, or unintentional behaviour, like human error or negligence.
According to the 2024 Insider Threat Report, 48% of organisations reported a rise in the frequency of insider attacks over the past year. More than half experienced six or more incidents, and for 29% of the respondents, the average cost of remediation exceeded $1 million. This growing trend highlights the importance of adopting and continuously evaluating strategies to protect sensitive information and prevent such threats.
Background checks are consistently listed among the top preventative measures - they offer valuable insights into a person’s past behaviour, helping assess whether they can be trusted with access to sensitive information.
By conducting thorough background checks, businesses can examine an individual's past behaviours and associations, including their criminal history, employment records, and financial activities. By identifying any red flags or patterns of misconduct, HR professionals and stakeholders can assess the potential risk candidates for a role or current employees may pose to sensitive information.
The importance of re-screening current employees
Background checks shouldn’t stop once someone is hired. Re-screening employees throughout their time with the organisation helps maintain trust and reduces risk over time.
There are several reasons to re-screen:
- If employees move into different positions within the company, re-screening background checks helps to verify they’re still suitable for the role and the responsibilities required.
- Re-screening helps identify any changes in an employee's background or behaviour, such as criminal records or financial troubles, that could impact their suitability for the position.
- To ensure the company remains in compliance with regulated business requirements to frequently re-screen employees, including SMCR and BS7858 requirements.
Preventing insider threats is increasingly important, especially in regulated industries such as financial services, government and defence, education, transportation, and healthcare. These industries operate under specific regulations and compliance requirements, such as the FCA and CQC, to protect sensitive information. But even outside those sectors, it’s a best practice that contributes to a more secure and compliant workplace.
Establishing a culture of security
Embedding background checks into your hiring and retention processes reinforces a culture of security. It shows your organisation takes insider threat prevention seriously and encourages employees to do the same.
Creating a security-aware culture doesn’t mean being overly strict - it means communicating expectations and providing support to help employees understand their role in protecting sensitive data.
Follow these best practices to implement an insider threat programme in a way that feels collaborative rather than punitive:
- Involve employees: Set up a cross-functional group to shape policies and share feedback.
- Lead with values: Explain how security supports the company’s mission and protects everyone.
- Give clear guidance: Offer simple training on handling sensitive information, like misdirected emails.
- Handle issues with care: Train managers to have supportive conversations if concerns arise.
- Reward engagement: Recognise employees who complete training or raise valid concerns.
- Be transparent: Clearly explain what is monitored and how that information is used.
- Learn from mistakes: Use incidents as a chance to improve processes before bigger issues arise.
Protecting sensitive information and maintaining a positive culture go hand-in-hand. Develop policies collaboratively, support employees, and emphasise shared values to build an insider threat programme that everyone strengthens.
How to prevent insider threats in today's global, remote working world
Global and remote work opens up exciting opportunities, giving businesses access to diverse, highly skilled talent worldwide. But with this flexibility comes increased risk.
Hybrid and remote work environments have expanded the attack surface, making it harder to monitor and control access to sensitive information. According to the 2024 Insider Threat Report, 70% of organisations are concerned about insider risks in hybrid settings.
To mitigate these risks, organisations can:
- Implement strong authentication protocols to ensure only authorised access.
- Develop clear security policies that address the nuances of remote work.
- Conduct comprehensive background screenings for all employees, regardless of location.
By proactively addressing these areas, organisations can harness the benefits of global talent while maintaining robust security measures.
The role of automation in preventing insider threats
Conducting thorough and ongoing background checks is essential for insider threat prevention, but managing the process manually can be time-consuming. Using a third-party platform streamlines screening through automation, triggering checks for new hires and renewals, flagging issues via dashboards, and standardising workflows for consistency.
Mobile compatibility and real-time monitoring make it easy for managers to review results and stay alert to any changes between checks.
Automating this process saves time, supports compliance and normalises background checks across the organisation.
With Zinc, you can run all the essential checks to gain insights into a candidate’s past and potential risks. This enables smarter hiring, safer retention, and a more secure working environment.
Background checks provide valuable insights into an individual's past, character, and potential motivations. Use this information to make informed decisions when it comes to hiring, retaining, and monitoring employees. By leveraging the insights gained through background checks, organisations reduce the likelihood of insider threats and promote a secure and trusted environment.
To find out how Zinc can help you streamline processes while staying compliant, book a demo today.
FAQs
1. What are some common signs of insider threats to watch for?
Unusual login times, attempts to access restricted data, sudden changes in behaviour, or excessive file downloads all could indicate a potential insider threat. Monitoring tools and regular audits can help detect these red flags early and prevent bigger problems from occurring.
2. Do small businesses need to worry about insider threats?
Yes. Insider threats can affect organisations of any size. Small businesses often have fewer resources dedicated to security, which can make them even more vulnerable to internal risks if proper screening and safeguards aren’t in place.
3. What’s the difference between an intentional and an unintentional insider threat?
An intentional insider threat involves a person deliberately causing harm, like stealing data or sabotaging systems. Unintentional threats can occur through mistakes, such as sending sensitive information to the wrong person or falling for a phishing email. Both can have serious consequences and require different prevention strategies, like strong access controls and regular background checks for intentional insider threats, and a mix of employee training and clear data handling policies for unintentional insider threats.
