How to Spot a Corporate Mole

You'd like to think that you could trust all your employees, and that your company secrets are safe. But there are a growing number of cases that prove spies can enter corporations to gather intelligence on their operations. Here's how to spot a corporate mole.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

1. Evaluate new employees carefully. Check references, financial backgrounds and criminal records for prospective workers. Cutting corners on the interview process can leave you vulnerable to a corporate mole.
2. Monitor emails on work accounts. It's generally legal, and frequently the source of sensitive information passing out of the building. It's probably the easiest was for a corporate mole to hurt you, but by checking outgoing mail you can spot potential trouble.
3. Keep track of employees' moods. Although in a large company there is little chance of keeping everyone happy, make sure each division is alert for disgruntled staff. Those individuals are the most susceptible to being recruited as moles; revenge is often cited as the top motive for stealing information. Watch for a decline in job performance, attitude or relations with coworkers.
4. Watch for suspicious behavior. Note any employees who stay when no one else is in the office, or who take an unusual interest in other areas of the operation. Although this can also be a sign of a good worker, don't ignore the possibility that it could be a ploy by a corporate mole to get sensitive information.
5. Limit proprietary information. Although openness is a worthy goal of many companies, restrict the number of people who have access to the most sensitive data. If someone tries to get around those blocks, you may have just spotted a corporate mole.
6. Use technology. Most corporate moles use high-tech methods to steal information, but experts are constantly developing new software programs to make your system more secure. By staying a step ahead, you may spot a corporate mole.
7. Review your IT security. Although you may spot a corporate mole by discovering someone using the copy machine late at night, you're more likely to uncover spying by paying close attention to where your employees go in your computer system. Consider making some areas off limits to certain levels of employees. Closely track when staff members venture into files that are outside of their realm. And while this is important in the virtual world, taking these same kinds of precautions with physical areas of your corporate offices (for example, requiring signing to sensitive areas) can also help you to spot a mole.