Combating Insider Threat in the Open-World Environments: Identification, Monitoring, and Data Augmentation

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed a dramatic increase in a class of security threats known as "insider threats". These threats occur when individuals with authorized access to an organization's network engage in harmful activities, potentially leading to the disclosure of vital information or adversely affecting the organization's systems (e.g., financial loss, system crashes, and national security challenges). Distinct from other types of terror attacks, combating insider threats exhibits several unique challenges, including (1) rarity, (2) non-separability, (3) label scarcity, (4) dynamics, and (5) heterogeneity, making themselves extremely difficult to identify and mitigate. We target the challenging problem of combating insider threats in open-world environments by leveraging a variety of data sources (e.g., internal system logs, employee networks, human trafficking, and smuggling networks). To effectively combat these intricate threats, we introduce an interactive learning mechanism that is composed of three mutually beneficial learning modules: insider identification, insider monitoring, and data augmentation. Each module plays a crucial role in enhancing our ability to detect and mitigate insider threats, thereby contributing to a more secure and resilient organizational environment.