chapter nine

9 Incident management and recovery

 

This chapter covers

  • Incident management in cybersecurity
  • Evaluating and improving incident response
  • Techniques for effective incident analysis
  • Strategies for reporting and communicating incidents
  • Methods for incident mitigation and recovery

Incident management is a cornerstone of a cybersecurity strategy, establishing that organizations can effectively respond to and recover from cyber threats. The ability to swiftly and accurately manage incidents can mean the difference between a minor disruption and a significant breach. This chapter focuses on responding to and recovering from incidents using proven methodologies and a systematic approach that is efficient and repeatable.

We will investigate the steps necessary to build a comprehensive incident management plan, from the initial detection of a security event to its resolution and communication with stakeholders. Each section will provide practical insights and metrics to help organizations assess and improve their incident response capabilities. By the end of this chapter, you will understand how to develop an effective incident management process, analyze incidents to prevent future occurrences, and confirm that your organization is prepared to respond to any cybersecurity threat.

9.1 Incident management

9.2 Planning and preparation

9.3 Testing to IRP

9.3.1 Tabletop exercise example

9.3.2 Tabletop exercise metrics

9.3.3 Table for tabletop exercise evaluation sample

9.4 Detection and documentation

9.4.1 Three-Tier Severity Model

9.4.2 Five-Tier Severity Model

9.4.3 Changing Severity Over Time

9.4.4 Practical Example of Incident Documentation

9.4.5 Chain of Custody

9.4.6 Incident management metrics

9.4.7 Incident management metrics exercise

9.5 Incident triage and analysis

9.5.1 Case Study: Financial Institution Data Breach

9.5.2 Incident Metrics

9.5.3 Incident metrics exercise

9.5.4 Incident metrics table

9.6 Notification and communication

9.7 Containing validated incidents

9.8 Evidence gathering and forensic analysis

9.9 Eradication of incidents

9.9.1 Incident response metrics

9.10 Recovering to operational status

9.11 Post incident and lessons learned

9.11.1 Incident reporting and communication metrics

9.11.2 Incident reporting and communication metrics exercise

9.12 Summary