Internal Theft
Internal theft,even though it is not often talked about, it is one of the most serious threats facing business today. Management can prevent employee theft through a combination of six proactive steps aimed at protecting a company within.

At 24/7 Close Protection Ltd our aim is to help our clients reduce this problem dramatically, by helping them in the way they look at the problems facing them. This can be from pre-employment screening to the security issues they have internally and externally. Access should also be restricted and any keys to any part of the building where documentation is kept. There should also be a key log record of all keys to these areas, where employees and contractors should sign for them. This will help with knowing who has had what keys to what areas and on what time and day.

The primary objective of using such equipment as a cameras is to deter an employee from stealing. The second objective is to catch employees who are stealing. If a system is completely known, employees will work around it to embezzle. By identifying only a few technological measures, the company discourages internal theft while protecting themselves from those willing to take the risk.

Another reason for implementing a loss management plan is the actual loss companies face because of internal theft. The average U.S. business looses about 6% of its gross revenue to fraud and theft, or about \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\$400 billion annually. This substantial loss eats away at the profits of the business community.

The research also revealed that, on average, women are around 20% more likely than men to feel that taking documents and files is acceptable given the same scenario. Men, however, are 28.6% more likely to actually go ahead and steal corporate IP.

According to the survey, the biggest deterrent against taking IP when a person leaves a job would be having to sign a legal document in an exit interview stating categorically that they hadn't taken electronic copies of any corporate documents or files.

"UK businesses are losing £billions worth of Intellectual Property every year," said Simon Janes, UK managing director at Ibas. "Unless urgent action is taken, the problem will only get worse as Information Technology is making it easier and easier to steal IP. 30 years ago it would have been virtually impossible to steal a filing cabinet's worth of documents. Today, however, employees can quickly and easily copy the same amount of information onto a disk and slip it into their pocket on the way out of the door."

Businesses need to toughen up their internal policies and make sure every employee is aware of the action that will be taken if they are caught stealing IP. Companies must have an incident management plan in place and bring in computer forensics experts to properly investigate suspected cases of IP theft to ensure that guilt can be proven beyond any reasonable doubt.

So, why do employees take advantage of this trust and bite the hand that feeds them? According to Dana Turner of Security Education Systems, there are three fundamental reasons why employees steal from their employers.

Need
The first reason is a need for money to support a lifestyle or family. The particular needs for the money can vary. However, some may be to support a drug or gambling habit or simply to support expensive living standards. Employees may also steal to support a growing family or to recover the loss of a recently unemployed spouse.

A second reason why employees steal is for revenge. Often employees are irritated about their current situation or angry towards the people above them and steal as a means of getting back at the company. Employees that steal for this reason are usually not thinking clearly and act in the moment.

The third reason credited for internal theft is the excitement employees get when they steal. Employees that steal for this reason get an adrenaline rush from the risk of being caught. They consider it a game and often have no true need for what they steal. Being aware of the reasons for theft provides a platform for preventing it.