Modern businesses face a growing number of cyber incidents that can disrupt operations, compromise sensitive data, and damage their reputation. Even the most effective defence cannot stop every cyber-attack or disaster, making it crucial to develop a structured plan for how you will identify, manage, and mitigate any incidents that might occur. This is the purpose served by an incident response plan, or IRP.
But how do you create one?
1. Assemble Your Incident Response Team
Before you can develop your plan, you will need to assemble an incident response team. This is the group who will be responsible for carrying out the plan, should a cyber incident occur. While IT and security staff will form the core of this team, you should be careful to include representatives from various departments as this will ensure a comprehensive and balanced approach.
Some key roles to consider include:
- Incident Response Manager: The person responsible for overseeing the entire incident response process.
- Technical Lead: An IT professional who investigates and contains security threats.
- Legal Advisor: Ensures compliance with regulations and advises on the legal implications of the incident.
- Communications Lead: Handles internal and external communications, including press releases and client notifications.
Each member of the incident response team should have clearly defined roles and responsibilities, and be well-trained in response procedures.
2. Define What Constitutes an Incident
Not every IT issue qualifies as a cyber incident, so you must define what types of events will trigger your IRP. A cyber-attack, for example, is a very different situation to a power outage. Consider categorising incidents on a severity scale, as this will help you and your response team understand which events should be prioritised based on the level of urgency and potential damage.
3. Establish Clear Communication Protocols
During an incident, clear and timely communication is essential. Your IRP should define a set of communication protocols for both internal and external stakeholders. Your response team will need to communicate their next steps and provide progress reports. You will also need a way to notify clients, partners, the authorities, and possibly the public that an incident has occurred. There should be clear guidelines on how and when all such communications should take place, as well as an emergency contact channel to account for the possibility that standard channels will not be functional.
4. Develop an Incident Response Workflow
The incident response workflow is your detailed, step-by-step guide explaining how cyber incidents will be handled. This workflow should include the following phases:
- Identification: Detect events, and determine whether they qualify as a cyber incident. This could involve monitoring system logs, network traffic, or alerts from security tools.
- Containment: Once an incident is confirmed, your first priority is to contain the threat and prevent it from spreading. Isolate compromised systems, block malicious IP addresses, and disable user accounts if necessary.
- Eradication: Remove the cause of the incident, such as deleting malware, closing vulnerabilities, or securing breached systems.
- Recovery: Restore systems to their normal operations, ensuring that they are fully functional and secure. This will mean restoring data from backups, reconfiguring systems, and validating that no threats remain.
- Lessons Learned: After the incident is resolved, conduct a post-incident review. This helps the team understand what happened, how it was handled, and what improvements can be made to prevent future incidents.
Each step should be assigned to specific personnel, so that everyone understands what their role is.
5. Create an Incident Reporting System
Effective incident response relies on your ability to detect threats. Implement a reporting system that allows employees to notify you or the response team of potential security concerns. The faster an incident is reported, the sooner you can put your plan into action.
Make sure that all employees understand the importance of early detection, and the correct process for reporting potential incidents. Cyber awareness training may help them identify threats and understand when they should escalate concerns.
6. Test and Update Your IRP Regularly
Your IRP is a waste of effort if it falls apart the first time a real incident occurs. Regularly test it with both tabletop exercises and practical drills, to ensure that it plays out as intended. This will help you identify potential problems early.
Your IRP should be updated as new threats emerge and your business changes. Old plans can quickly become ineffective. Incorporate lessons learned from previous incidents and simulations, as this will strengthen your plan in the future.
Read more: 7 Most Common Cyber-Attacks on Australian Businesses
Reliable Incident Response for Your Peace of Mind
An effective, well-tested IRP is essential for helping your business mitigate the impact of cyber threats and ensure continuity. It is an ongoing commitment that will require time, money, and effort to properly maintain – but it is worth it to know that, if a serious incident does occur, your company is ready to face it.
The cyber security experts at Pronet understand that not every business has the resources to develop and maintain their own IRP, which is why we offer affordable and comprehensive incident response services. We’ll help you develop a security strategy that’s fully compliant with all regulations, including the ACSC’s Essential 8 – and if a cyber incident happens anyway, we’ll be right there to guide you through it. Explore our incident response services today, and learn what true peace of mind looks like.
