How NIST CSF 2.0 Helps You Handle Insider Threats

A practical guide to applying the Cybersecurity Framework to insider risk

Insider threats are one of the trickiest cybersecurity challenges out there. Whether it’s a disgruntled employee, someone who makes a careless mistake, or a staff member whose account gets compromised, these threats come from people who already have access and trust. That makes them harder to spot and even harder to stop.

In 2024, more than 75% of organizations dealt with insider threat incidents, and nearly two-thirds of data breaches involved insiders. That’s a huge number, and it shows why having a solid insider threat program is essential.

The NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.0, released in 2024, gives organizations a structured way to manage cybersecurity risks. It’s built around six core Functions: Govern, Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover. Each one plays a role in helping you prevent, detect, and respond to insider threats. Let’s walk through how each Function works in practice.

1. Govern

Set the foundation for managing insider risk.

Govern is the newest Function in CSF 2.0, and it’s all about leadership, accountability, and strategy. It ensures that insider threat management is not just a technical issue, but a business priority with clear oversight.

What to focus on:

• Define your cybersecurity risk management strategy, including how insider threats fit into your overall risk posture.
• Assign roles and responsibilities. Make sure leadership, HR, legal, and IT all know their part in managing insider threats.
• Establish policies and procedures for insider risk. This includes acceptable use policies, monitoring guidelines, and disciplinary processes.
• Ensure compliance with laws and regulations related to privacy, data protection, and employee monitoring.
• Promote a culture of security. Leadership should model good behavior and reinforce the importance of trust and accountability.

Real-world example:
A manufacturing company creates an Insider Threat Governance Committee that includes executives from HR, legal, and IT. They meet quarterly to review insider risk metrics, approve policy updates, and ensure the program aligns with business goals and compliance requirements.

2. Identify

Know what’s important and who could put it at risk.

This step is about understanding your environment. You need to know what data and systems are critical, who has access to them, and what kinds of insider threats you might face.

What to focus on:

• Make a list of your sensitive assets like customer data, financial records, intellectual property, and internal systems.
• Think through different insider threat scenarios. Could someone steal data before quitting? Could an employee accidentally leak sensitive info? Could a contractor misuse their access?
• Identify roles with elevated access, like IT admins, HR staff, or finance managers. These are often higher-risk positions.
• Work with HR to flag potential risks during hiring, promotions, or role changes. Background checks and behavioral indicators can help.

Real-world example:
A healthcare company identifies its electronic health record system as a critical asset. It maps out who has access and flags system admins and billing staff for closer monitoring. It also sets up an insider threat team with HR, IT, and legal to oversee the program.

3. Protect

Put safeguards in place to prevent insider incidents.

This is where you set up the controls that make it harder for insiders to cause harm—whether intentionally or by accident.

What to focus on:

• Limit access to only what people need. Use role-based access control, multi-factor authentication, and tools to manage privileged accounts.
• Use data loss prevention (DLP) tools to block or alert on unauthorized data transfers.
• Train employees on insider threats. Help them understand what’s risky behavior and how to report anything suspicious.
• Make sure your HR processes include security. Revoke access immediately when someone leaves and conduct exit interviews to catch any red flags.
• Lock down physical access to sensitive areas. Monitor USB ports and printers to prevent data theft.

Real-world example:
A financial firm enforces least privilege by making sure customer service reps can’t access trading systems. It uses DLP to block unauthorized file transfers and provides quarterly training on insider threat awareness. When someone resigns, their access is disabled immediately, and company devices are collected.

4. Detect

Spot insider threats early through monitoring and alerts.

Even with strong protections, some insider threats will slip through. That’s why detection is so important. You want to catch suspicious behavior before it turns into a full-blown incident.

What to focus on:

• Monitor user activity with tools like SIEM (Security Information and Event Management). Look for things like off-hours access, mass downloads, or policy violations.
• Use behavior analytics to spot anomalies. If someone suddenly starts accessing systems they’ve never touched before, that’s a red flag.
• Combine data from different sources: IT logs, HR records, badge access logs, etc.  to get a full picture.
• Define what counts as suspicious. Keep a list of insider threat indicators, both technical and behavioral.
• Make it easy for employees to report concerns. Anonymous reporting channels can help surface issues that tech tools might miss.

Real-world example:
A tech company uses behavior analytics to monitor developer activity. When a developer downloads a huge amount of source code after submitting their resignation, the system flags it. The security team investigates and finds an attempted data theft.

5. Respond

Take action quickly when an insider incident occurs.

Once you’ve detected a threat, you need to act fast. The goal is to contain the damage, investigate what happened, and communicate clearly with the right people.

What to focus on:

• Create an insider incident response plan. Include steps for containment, investigation, and communication. Make sure HR, legal, and IT are all involved.
• Suspend access for anyone suspected of insider activity. Preserve evidence like logs and device images.
• Investigate thoroughly. Use digital forensics and interviews to understand what happened and how far it went.
• Loop in legal early. Make sure you’re handling evidence properly and complying with any laws or regulations.
• Communicate carefully. Internally, keep stakeholders informed. Externally, be transparent if customers or regulators need to be notified.

Real-world example:
After detecting unauthorized access to customer data, a retail company disables the employee’s accounts, seizes their laptop, and starts a forensic investigation. HR and legal manage the personnel side, and the company prepares a breach notification for affected customers.

6. Recover

Get back to normal and learn from the incident.

Recovery isn’t just about restoring systems, it’s about improving your defenses so the same thing doesn’t happen again.

What to focus on:

• Restore any data or systems that were damaged. Use backups and make sure they’re protected from insider tampering.
• Conduct a post-incident review. What went wrong? What worked? What needs to change?
• Improve your insider threat program. Add new tools, update policies, and adjust training based on what you learned.
• Rebuild trust. Communicate with employees and customers to show that you’ve handled the incident and taken steps to prevent future ones.
• Test your new controls. Run simulations or tabletop exercises to make sure everything works as expected.

Real-world example:
After an insider deletes critical files, the company restores them from backups and updates its offboarding process. It also runs a tabletop exercise to test its new incident response procedures and make sure they’re effective.

Quick Reference Table

Function	What It Helps With	Example Actions
Govern	Set strategy and accountability	Define insider threat policy, assign roles, ensure compliance
Identify	Understand risks and assets	Map sensitive data, flag high-risk roles, assess scenarios
Protect	Prevent insider incidents	Limit access, use DLP, train staff, secure HR processes
Detect	Spot suspicious behavior	Monitor activity, use analytics, encourage reporting
Respond	Contain and investigate	Disable access, preserve evidence, notify stakeholders
Recover	Restore and improve	Use backups, review lessons learned, test new controls

Final Thoughts

The NIST CSF 2.0 gives you a flexible but powerful framework for managing insider threats. By aligning your insider threat program with all six Functions: Govern, Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover; you can build a layered defense that covers every stage of the threat lifecycle.

This isn’t just about technology. It’s about people, processes, and culture. Insider threats often involve trusted individuals, so your response needs to be thoughtful, coordinated, and grounded in clear policies and leadership support.

If you’re building a new insider threat program or refining an existing one, CSF 2.0 is a great place to start. And if you’d like help turning this into a presentation, checklist, or policy draft, I’d be happy to help. Just let me know what you need next.