Gig Workers are the Most Dangerous Insider Threat We Aren’t Talking About

The term “gig economy” refers to the increasingly common use of skilled freelance or otherwise independent workers on a short-term basis—often one project at a time. The availability of these sorts of gig workers has brought massive change to global work culture over the last few years. 

Uber and Lyft drivers are prime examples. There’s no set schedule; the work is done on a ride-by-ride (gig-by-gig) basis. In the early days of the rideshare business, you were either getting into an Uber vehicle or a Lyft vehicle. But today, drivers often drive for both companies simultaneously. This is a very common aspect of the gig world—workers are often engaged by direct competitors at the same time. The ubiquitous availability of remote skillsets allows labor to be spun up or spun down as needed and workers can be hired from virtually anywhere. 

In the past, an employee worked for a single company at a time—and maybe even at a single company for their entire career. There was a great deal of loyalty and longevity. But today,  a contractor or a full-time employee may only stay at a company for 18 months before they move on to other opportunities. Or, even less time than that. According to a 2021 study from IBM’s Institute for Business Value, one in four workers plans to switch jobs this year, an increased pace vs. even a year ago, which was one in five. Of last year’s job switchers, more than half identified as millennial or Gen Z.

Within the technology industry in particular, however, short-term workers present some acute risks to employers—some of which are quite serious. While the business advantages might be clear, high degrees of temporality and transience make the gig economy a huge bomb for security. But no one seems to hear it ticking yet.

Demand