Over 2,365 cyberattacks occurred in 2023, impacting over 343 million people. These are just the number of reported attacks and may not reflect the total number of true attacks that year.
Every business is at risk of being targeted in a cyberattack, but how you respond to an attack matters.
Cybersecurity companies put effective incident response measures in place so that if there are ever issues where a breach occurs, it can be corrected rapidly.
What is an Incident Response Plan?
An incident response plan (IRP) is a complete plan with steps and procedures to follow if a cyberattack is discovered. Plans are meant to protect:
- Networks
- Services
- Data
Who is Involved in Incident Response Plans?
Your IRP must include a dedicated team of professionals who are in charge of executing the plan properly. Multiple key leaders and teams must be put in place, including:
- Incident response manager: The main person who is in charge of plan execution and working with teams to ensure all procedures are followed.
- DevOps: Your DevOps team is responsible for investigating incidents to identify what transpired. Once the root cause of the incident is found, efforts can be made to prevent further damage and stop an ongoing attack.
- Response team: Your IT team will need to have a multitude of skill sets, such as application development and systems administrators, who will work to execute the plan. Furthermore, these team members will ensure all regulations and laws are followed so that the business remains compliant.
- Legal: A legal team, often advisors, will also come in to help the business understand any regulatory or legal requirements that must be followed.
Of course, IT will be brought in to provide any forensic support possible and offer solutions. Multiple teams will come together during the IRP and will need to work quickly to prevent further damage.
IRPs are designed to protect businesses from the growing number of cyber threats that they face, but they’re not a one-and-done process. You must review and update the plan as incident responses or team members change.
For example, if your lead incident response manager is no longer with the company, someone else must be trained and put in charge to oversee the team’s efforts.
Why All Businesses Need Effective Incident Response
As one of the leading cybersecurity firms in Miami, we know that in today’s digital world, cyber threats are a reality for businesses of all sizes. Incident response plans allow you to take proactive steps to protect your business to:
- Reduce attack duration
- Limit the extent of damage an attack causes
- Minimize the level of negative publicity from the attack
- Put best practices in place to safeguard the business
- Maintain trust among customers and clients
Legal and regulatory compliance must also be considered, especially concerning certain laws and regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation.
Your plan empowers your organization to detect and contain security breaches to avoid further potential damage. A thorough plan will identify attacks and minimize financial losses and downtime.
Contact us today if you need help creating an IRP or want to improve your security.