What is the main risk when a DLP system detects company data transferred to a personal USB drive? Learn how insider threats and data exfiltration can lead to data breaches, regulatory violations, and reputational harm—essential for CompTIA Security+ (Plus) SY0-701 exam success.
Table of Contents
Question
A DLP (Data Loss Prevention) system flags an employee transferring company data to a personal USB drive. What is the primary risk?
A. Ransomware attack
B. Insider threat
C. Trojan infection
D. Data poisoning
E. Supply chain attack
Answer
B. Insider threat
Explanation
Unauthorized data transfers are a common insider threat leading to data leaks.
The primary risk when a Data Loss Prevention (DLP) system flags an employee transferring company data to a personal USB drive is an insider threat.
An insider threat occurs when someone with authorized access to company systems—such as an employee—misuses that access to steal, leak, or compromise sensitive data.
Transferring company data to a personal USB drive is a classic example of potential data exfiltration, where confidential or proprietary information is removed from the organization, either intentionally (malicious insider) or unintentionally (negligent insider).
Insider threats are particularly challenging to detect and prevent because insiders already have legitimate access to sensitive data and systems. USB drives make it easy to quickly copy large volumes of data, increasing the risk of undetected data theft or leakage.
Consequences of insider threats include financial loss, reputational damage, regulatory penalties (such as for violating GDPR, HIPAA, or PCI DSS), and loss of intellectual property.
DLP systems help mitigate this risk by monitoring, alerting, and blocking unauthorized data transfers to removable media, but the underlying threat is the potential for an insider to compromise sensitive information.
Unauthorized data transfers to personal USB drives are a key indicator of insider threats, which can result in data breaches, theft, and significant organizational harm.
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