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24/7 Insider Threat Incident Response

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Insider Threat Response

24/7 Emergency Hotline for insider threat response: 1 (833) 562-5273

If the risk is active right now: disable access safely, preserve evidence, and contain data movement before the situation escalates. Lockard Security can help with insider threat response, forensics, and recovery without destroying the audit trail needed for HR, legal, or regulators.

Insider threat response is the structured process of detecting, containing, investigating, and resolving risk caused by a trusted identity. That can include employees, contractors, vendors, or compromised accounts using legitimate access. The goal is to stop harm quickly, prove what happened, and restore trust in systems and identities.

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What An Insider Threat Is

Understanding Insider Threat Response

Insider threat response involving malicious and negligent insiders exfiltrating sensitive data
Insider threat response focuses on detecting, investigating, and stopping malicious, negligent, or compromised insiders before data loss occurs.

Insider threat response addresses security incidents caused by employees, contractors, or trusted users who misuse access either intentionally or unintentionally. These incidents often involve data exfiltration, credential abuse, sabotage, or policy violations that bypass traditional perimeter defenses.

An insider threat involves misuse of legitimate access. The intent can be malicious, negligent, or opportunistic, and sometimes the “insider” is actually an external attacker operating through a stolen account. Insider threat response requires careful containment because heavy-handed actions can destroy evidence, trigger retaliation, or create HR and legal complications.

A strong public reference for planning and awareness is CISA guidance on insider threats: CISA Insider Threat Mitigation.

Common Insider Threat Scenarios

Data theft and IP exfiltration

Large downloads, bulk exports, unusual cloud sharing, or suspicious email forwarding to personal accounts.

Privilege abuse

Admin access used for unauthorized changes, new accounts, access grants, or security control weakening.

Sabotage

Deletion of data, destruction of backups, breaking production systems, or intentional misconfiguration.

Negligent behavior

Accidental sharing, unsafe use of personal devices, mis-sent emails, or storing sensitive files in unmanaged locations.

Compromised insider accounts

Stolen credentials or session tokens used to look like normal activity while the attacker steals data or moves laterally.

Third-party or vendor misuse

Vendors, MSPs, or contractors exceeding authorized scope, or attackers abusing remote management access.

Key point: insider threat response is usually about “what access existed and what was done with it.” We focus on identities, data movement, and audit trails before making irreversible containment changes.

High-Signal Indicators To Watch For

Most insider cases are confirmed through correlation. You want identity logs, endpoint telemetry, and data access trails that line up in time. Below are indicators that frequently show up in insider threat response investigations.

Identity and access indicators

  • New privileged group membership, role assignments, or admin consents
  • Suspicious sign-ins, unfamiliar devices, or sudden change in authentication patterns
  • New mailbox rules, forwarding, delegated access, or OAuth app grants
  • Unusual VPN sign-ins or remote access from unexpected locations

Data movement indicators

  • Bulk downloads from SharePoint, OneDrive, Google Drive, or internal file servers
  • Large exports from CRM, ticketing, HR, finance, or customer platforms
  • Unusual creation of archives (ZIP, 7z) or repeated compression activity
  • Cloud sharing links created broadly or shared to external personal addresses

Endpoint and admin activity

  • Use of remote tools on endpoints or servers without a valid change request
  • Security tooling tampering, log clearing attempts, or disabling controls
  • Unexpected scheduled tasks, scripts, or new services

Typical Insider Threat Response Timeline

Insider threat response often moves in phases. The fastest wins come from containing access and preserving evidence early.

Phase 1: Triage

Validate the report, identify the user or identity, and determine whether activity is active right now.

Phase 2: Containment

Reduce risk without destroying evidence. This can include session revocation, targeted access removal, and safe monitoring.

Phase 3: Investigation

Build a timeline, identify accessed systems and data, and determine intent and scope using logs and forensic artifacts.

Phase 4: Remediation and recovery

Rotate credentials, correct access controls, restore systems if needed, and implement hardening to prevent recurrence.

Practical tip: if you suspect a compromised insider account, prioritize identity containment first. Session revocation, MFA resets, and privileged role review can stop ongoing damage quickly.

Our Insider Threat Incident Response Process

Lockard Security uses a structured insider threat response process designed for HR and legal sensitivity, strong evidence preservation, and rapid risk reduction. We focus on facts, audit trails, and clear findings.

1) Rapid triage and containment

Stop active harm, reduce access, and preserve evidence while coordinating with HR, legal, and leadership.

2) Evidence preservation

Secure logs and forensic artifacts before they roll over. Preserve mailbox rules, cloud audit logs, and endpoint telemetry.

3) Investigation and scoping

Determine what systems were accessed, what data moved, and what the timeline shows across identity, endpoint, and cloud sources.

4) Recovery and corrective action

Fix access control gaps, rotate secrets, improve monitoring, and reduce the chance of recurrence.

5) Reporting and stakeholder support

Clear findings for leadership, HR, legal, and regulators with actionable remediation steps.

6) Prevention roadmap

Prioritized controls for identity, logging, DLP, endpoint hardening, and privileged access management.

Data Sources And Platforms We Commonly Investigate

Insider threat response is only as strong as the visibility available. We commonly investigate environments using:

  • Microsoft: Microsoft 365, Exchange Online, SharePoint, OneDrive, Entra ID, Defender, Purview audit and DLP
  • Google: Google Workspace, Gmail audit logs, Drive activity, Admin console logs
  • Identity: Okta, Duo, conditional access controls, privileged role assignments
  • Collaboration: Slack, Teams, Zoom, file sharing and external guest access
  • Endpoints: Windows, macOS, Linux, EDR telemetry, forensic triage artifacts
  • Cloud: AWS, Azure, GCP audit trails and access logs

If logs are missing or retention is short, we can help prioritize quick wins that restore investigation capability.

Insider Threat Prevention And Hardening Checklist

You cannot prevent every insider scenario, but you can reduce risk and shorten detection time dramatically with layered controls.

Identity and access

  • Enforce MFA and review privileged access paths regularly
  • Implement least privilege and reduce standing admin rights
  • Alert on new admin role assignments, OAuth consents, and risky sign-ins

Visibility and audit readiness

  • Centralize logs and increase retention for identity, email, and file activity
  • Track bulk downloads, external sharing, and mailbox forwarding rules
  • Use DLP controls for high-risk data types and external destinations

Endpoint and data controls

  • EDR on endpoints and servers, protected from tampering
  • Disable legacy authentication and restrict risky protocols
  • Reduce local admin rights and block uncontrolled scripting where feasible
Want a practical plan: we can convert this checklist into a prioritized roadmap aligned to your tools and staffing.

Insider Threat Response FAQ

Is this a security issue or an HR issue?

It is often both. Insider threat response works best when security, HR, and legal coordinate early. We focus on evidence, audit trails, and risk reduction while supporting a clean process for stakeholders.

What should we preserve first?

Preserve identity logs, email audit logs, file access logs, EDR telemetry, and any ticketing or change records tied to the user or system. Avoid wiping systems or deleting accounts until scoping is complete.

How fast can you help?

If risk is active, call the hotline. We can guide containment immediately while starting evidence preservation and timeline building.

24/7 Insider Threat Response Help

If you suspect data theft, privilege abuse, sabotage, or a compromised insider account, contact us immediately. Faster containment usually reduces cost, exposure, and operational disruption.

24/7 Emergency Hotline: 1 (833) 562-5273
Email: [email protected]
Request Insider Threat Response

If you are not sure whether activity is malicious or accidental, we can still help. Insider threat response is often about confirming facts quickly, then taking the least disruptive containment steps first.