Tips for Establishing a Robust Cybersecurity Incident Response Plan

In today’s world cybersecurity is more important than ever. Every year, a cybersecurity incident compromise on average around 200 million records for U.S. companies alone. In the past 12 months alone cybersecurity has been compromised on average over 400 times a day. And, according to cybersecurity experts, cybersecurity incidents will continue to rise in frequency.

As cybersecurity vulnerabilities continue to multiply and cybersecurity threats continue to grow it is time for organizations, especially small business owners, to assess their cybersecurity plans and practices. Even if an organization does not think they are at risk of a cybersecurity crime occurring, cybersecurity can still be a major threat to their business.

One way to prepare for and prevent these costly cybersecurity incidents is to implement a robust cybersecurity incident response plan. This article will outline some essential aspects of a response plan.

What is a cybersecurity incident response plan?

A cybersecurity incident response plan is a detailed document outlining the steps an organization should take in the event of a cybersecurity incident. The goal of a cybersecurity incident response plan is to mitigate cybersecurity incidents that could compromise an organization’s cybersecurity or damage their credibility. This includes the steps taken before, during, and after cybersecurity breaches.

What should be included in a cybersecurity incident response plan?

There are certain features that any cybersecurity incident response plan should include to ensure that when an organization faces a cybersecurity problem they will be better equipped to handle it. These include:

– Standardized terminology specific for cybersecurity incidents

– Pre-determined responses for specific cybersecurity incidents: Identifying pre-determined responses for cybersecurity breaches will help your response plan run more efficiently and smoothly. If cybersecurity threat response plan members are well aware of their roles in the event of a cybersecurity incident they will be able to act quickly, effectively, and without hesitation.

– Detection and identification procedures: Detection and identification procedures for cybersecurity incidents are important to include in the response plan because it ensures that cybersecurity threats or breaches can be identified as early as possible. This means that cybersecurity incident management team members will be able to act quickly, effectively, and without hesitation.

-IR team identification and roles: A cybersecurity incident response team should be identified and included in your response plan so that everyone knows who will be involved when a cybersecurity incident occurs.

– A cybersecurity incident management policy: This helps your cybersecurity incident response plan run more effectively by defining how cybersecurity incidents will be handled. This includes cybersecurity threat management and recovery procedures, such as the actions to take when an organization faces a cybersecurity threat or breach, who is responsible for what, and how cybersecurity incidents will be reported.

Preparing for Cybersecurity Threats

As an organization, it is impossible to be 100% prepared for every cybersecurity threat or breach that could happen. Instead, focus on establishing a cybersecurity incident response plan. If you have done everything you can to prevent cybersecurity incidents and are prepared to respond to these incidents, cybersecurity issues should be of little concern to you and your team.

For an increased level of protection and greater peace of mind, consider hiring a managed services provider such as Envision, who will help to manage and monitor your business’s cybersecurity and keep your business’s IT protected!