AN INSIDER THREAT NEUTRALISATION MITIGATION MODEL PREDICATED ON COGNITIVE DISSONANCE (ITNMCD)

Abstract

The insider threat concern is a complex issue as the problem domain intersects the social, the technical and the socio-technical dimensions. Consequently counteracting the insider threat involves influencing the insider’s perceptions and behaviour in order to ensure compliance. When an individual’s actions and beliefs are incongruent, this induces a phenomenon known as cognitive dissonance. In this state, individuals are self-motivated to change either their behaviours or beliefs or they may rationalise their behaviour to reduce this dissonance. Neutralisation is a technique used by criminals to rationalise maleficence. In terms of the insider threat, it has been proposed that if the justifications for committing an offence are eliminated then the insider is less likely to commit the offence. This process is known as neutralisation mitigation. This research proposes that inducing cognitive dissonance may be a means of mitigating the neutralisations that the insider may use to justify maleficence. To integrate these concepts into an implementable solution − the Insider Threat Neutralisation Mitigation model predicated on Cognitive Dissonance (ITNMCD) is proposed.