Assessing Insider Threats

A threat assessment for insiders is the process of compiling and analyzing information about a person of concern who may have the interest, motive, intention, and capability of causing harm to an organization or persons. Threat assessment for insiders is a unique discipline requiring a team of individuals to assess a person of concern and determine the scope, intensity, and consequences of a potential threat.

These assessments are based on behaviors, not profiles, and behaviors are variable in nature. The goal of the assessment is to prevent an insider incident, whether intentional or unintentional. No one-size-fits-all approach to the assessment exists. Each assessment should be precise, thorough, and conducted in accordance with organizational guidelines and applicable laws. Intervention strategies should be focused on helping the person of concern, while simultaneously working to mitigate the potential effects of a hostile act.

Resources

• CISA Insider Threat Mitigation Guide
• The FBI's Making Prevention a Reality: Identifying, Assessing, and Managing the Threat of Targeted Attacks is a practical guide on assessing and managing the threat of targeted violence.
• The U.S. Department of Justice National Institute of Justice provides a report on Protective Intelligence and Threat Assessment Investigations on monitoring, controlling, and redirecting a subject and, when it is appropriate, to close a case.
• The USSS’s National Threat Assessment Center provides analyses of Mass Attacks in Public Spaces that identify stressors that may motivate perpetrators to commit an attack.
  • 2019 Report
  • 2018 Report
  • 2017 Report