Yesterday, the Institute for Analytic Interviewing (IAI) finished the Insider Threat Mitigation and Countermeasures training program at Black Hat 2017.  I was pleased to be invited by IAI to provide a portion of this training program.  I provided Intelligent Communication training designed to help these cyber security professionals use communication skills to enhance their insider threat security programs.  We discussed ways to leverage communication and psychology to increase compliance with existing security protocols.  We also reviewed ways to use advanced communication skills to collect information on potential insider threats.  Our overall approach was how to use communication skills to mitigate insider threats before they occur.  My colleagues at IAI, then taught the interviewing skills necessary to complete successful investigations insider threats.

Professional Training for Security Personnel

It was a great few days teaching Intelligent Communication skills to this group of security professionals.  It is a privilege to work with a group of highly skilled and knowledgeable professionals.  While already accomplished in their fields, they continue to seek out additional tools and skills that will help them provide better security to their companies and organizations.  I learned a great deal from them in the process as well.

Insider threat appears to be a growing problem in both the government and corporate sectors.  The problem even impacts companies and organizations who have robust technical systems in place.  For all companies and organizations seeking to protect classified and proprietary information, the weakest link is often not the secure network, but those who access the network.  As such, insider threat is a high tech problem that often needs a low tech solution…effective communication.

Intelligent Communication (IC) looks forward to its new partnership with IAI to provide communication skills to security professions working with insider threat programs and all professionals who want advanced communication training to help them excel in their jobs.  The IAI/IC partnership provides a comprehensive approach to communication and interview skills that are useful to all professionals who use these skills in their careers.

What’s coming up for Intelligent Communication?

We will be expanding our offerings for insider threat mitigation as part of our partnership with IAI.  This includes researching and developing enhanced profiling options for identifying potential insider threats.  We will use these profiles with the critical path approach developed during a number of studies on past insider threats.  This will lead to a more comprehensive approach to identifying insider threats, including developing specific indicators of insider threat, identifying potential insider threats, producing information collection requirements to obtain necessary information, and creating collection plans to manage the process of tracking potential insider threats along the critical path.

In addition, we will develop training on ways to involve other key players in the insider threat program.  Human resources, legal, employee assistance personnel, public affairs, and others can make vital contributions to a successful insider threat program.

Communication and Insider Threat

Technology is integrated throughout all aspects of our companies and/or organizations.  Cyber security has become everyone’s responsibility.  We believe that the communication skills provided by the Institute for Analytic Interviewing and Intelligent Communication can help organizations and companies vastly improve their cyber security posture.  We look forward to opportunities to help you enhance your security.

Be swift to hear and slow to speak,

rjm