Heist Movies vs. Reality #1: The Inside Man

In Ocean’s 11, Danny Ocean needed Linus Caldwell to infiltrate the casino. Months of preparation. Deep cover. The perfect inside man.

In 2024? Attackers just need Karen from Accounting to think the CEO really did email her about that urgent wire transfer at 4:47 PM on a Friday.

The Reality: Social engineering attacks increased 135% last year. No elaborate disguises needed—just a convincing email, a spoofed number, or a LinkedIn message that looks legitimate enough. The “inside man” is now any employee with access and a moment of distraction.

The Attack Vector:

• Phishing emails that mimic internal communications
• Vishing calls from “IT Support” needing your credentials
• Business Email Compromise (BEC) costing companies $2.9B annuall
• Pretexting that would make Frank Abagnale proud

Your Defense: Implement mandatory security awareness training—but make it actually engaging, not the same boring slideshow everyone clicks through. Simulate phishing attacks quarterly. Create a culture where “I need to verify this” is praised, not mocked.

Because in the real heist, every employee is potentially the inside man. The question is: are they working for you or against you without even knowing it?

Tomorrow: Why elaborate Hollywood heist plans have nothing on supply chain attacks.