Former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden speaks via video conference to Johns Hopkins University, in Baltimore, Feb, 17, 2016.

Former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden speaks via video conference to Johns Hopkins University, in Baltimore, Feb, 17, 2016. AP Photo/Juliet Linderman, File

Want to Plug Intel Leaks? Let Technology Find the Next Insider Threat

Lack of empathy? High narcissism? Self-absorbed? You could be the next Snowden.

The latest leak of classified documents via Wikileaks appear to have come from inside CIA, demonstrating the difficulty of protecting sensitive information even from those who are trusted to access it. Roughly 3 million people are cleared to access classified information. However, the background investigations used to grant security clearances rely on a behavioral model developed during World War II. It’s time for a new way.

With 21st century technology, investigators can do better, evaluating conduct and communications for signs of personality traits typical of at-risk employees. With current technology, they might have flagged Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning before they had a chance to cause serious damage to national security. It is a more accurate way of predicting misconduct than the cumbersome, time-consuming, and costly process by which the government currently grants clearances.

An initially loyal employee does not suddenly transform into a malicious insider. The path to a significant destructive act is marked by small infractions that grow in response to mounting personal and professional stress. Employees who engage in one type of counterproductive behavior will often engage in others. Minor misdeeds can escalate into severe transgressions.

Organizations must implement ways to monitor and evaluate employees continually. Advanced monitoring tools that identify life stressors, strong emotions, and atypical behavior can provide early warning of potential misconduct or spot small-scale malicious acts before they become something more sinister. It’s the same technology developed by retailers to analyze customers’ social media posts and micro-target their marketing to match individual shoppers’ preferences. Software that analyzes a consumer’s sentiments about a ski jacket can also assess an intelligence officer’s frustration with his job.

For example, in online chat room postings, Chelsea Manning frequently used the word “lose” in close proximity to the words “job” and “career” – textual relationships that linguistics software could flag. A subsequent review of the messages’ content could have revealed personal despair that led Manning to feel she had little to lose from destructive behavior.

Similarly, personality-mapping tools use psycholinguistic analysis to identify personality traits that may predispose an employee to commit destructive acts. Snowden’s postings to the online forum Ars Technica indicate a lack of empathy and trust, a high degree of narcissism and self-absorption, and a limited willingness to compromise – traits that suggest a tendency to justify and act on one’s beliefs regardless of the impact on others.

Data on an employee’s non-work activities – such as arrest records, court records, and credit bureau reports – can also reveal concerning behavior. An employee who was recently arrested or applied for multiple bank loans in a short period could have personal or financial problems that increase the risk of destructive behavior. Such records are reviewed as part of security clearance investigations, but cleared personnel are only reinvestigated every five years.

Not everyone whose wife leaves him or is unhappy at work turns into a malicious insider. Although security staff can draw on data analysis to identify insider threats, they also need help from human resources. Software can find and flag language or behaviors of potential concern, but a human is needed to assess an employee’s actions in the context of that person’s life. Coworkers and managers often note changes in attitude or minor counterproductive behaviors that may indicate an employee is struggling. Organizational leadership and human capital personnel must seek to establish a healthy environment that encourages employees to share concerns about coworkers so management can assess if an employee appears to be struggling and intervene to help, if necessary. 

If leaders want employees to be supportive, they must communicate why such intrusive programs are needed to protect the organization’s information, investments, reputation, and workforce. Make it clear that the point of insider threat programs is to help resolve problems rather than punish employees. If autonomous monitoring identifies a staff member with personal problems or financial difficulties that places him or her at risk, the organization can refer that person to counseling or to financial advisors to help work through these challenges, or it can mitigate the risk by moving the employee to a less stressful position. Only if employees believe that monitoring is designed to protect the health, safety, and well-being of the organization and its workforce can an insider program avoid alienating the very people it is designed to protect.

No single technology or technique will be a panacea. Through carefully designed programs that involve technology, human resources, comprehensive security policies, and effective leadership, government agencies and private companies can mitigate insider threat risks in ways that preserve employee privacy and assist at-risk employees before they can do damage. It may prevent the next Edward Snowden – a development that would benefit both the country and the individual who is diverted from a destructive path.

Daniel McGarvey is a counterintelligence expert at Alion Science and Technology. He is a principal author of a new report, “Assessing the Mind of the Malicious Insider,” which was released by the Intelligence and National Security Alliance, or INSA.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.