Accidental Damage and Deletion

Accidental deletion is an internal threat because data is removed by someone inside the organisation who makes a mistake, not by an outside attacker. It often happens because of incorrect access permissions: a member of staff can delete files or records that they only need to read or update. For example, a receptionist at a dentist's surgery has permission to delete old appointment records. While clearing space, they delete the whole month's appointments instead of only the cancelled ones, so the practice loses the schedule and must contact patients.

It can also happen through a lack of training. If you have never been shown how to save a new version, you might open an important file, type over it and save, wiping the original. Training and sensible permissions reduce the risk: staff should only be able to delete what their job needs, and they should know how to save and back up work.

Accidental physical damage is another internal threat. Equipment can be damaged by careless handling by someone inside the organisation. For example, a teacher wheels a heavy trolley into a charging laptop, snapping the power connector. The laptop cannot be used, repairs cost money and work is delayed while it is fixed. Organisations reduce this risk by training staff to handle equipment carefully and by keeping backups, so a damaged device does not mean the only copy of the data is lost.