Yet despite all the money you spend, the tools you buy, and the effort you put in to prevent compromise, you may still be attacked. Even the most advanced defenses can be bypassed. Threat actors have learned to adapt faster than many organizations can keep up. Ransomware-as-a-Service, AI-driven phishing, and supply chain compromises are all on the rise, and each can slip past traditional defenses.
When a cybersecurity incident happens, you need a comprehensive incident response process to align your team and set them up for success. Building an incident response plan in advance ensures your team is prepared to investigate and handle incidents efficiently, while minimizing business disruptions.
Here are seven key steps to help you build and maintain a cyber incident response process that works in today’s environment.
Step One: Define the Plan
Your organization needs clear incident response guidelines to help ensure everybody knows what they need to do in an emergency. Think of it like the safety briefing on an airplane. Even if you have flown hundreds of times, the airline still shows the video every flight because when stress hits, people forget details.
A strong cyber incident response plan should include:
- Team members and roles:Define established roles like “incident commander” and “incident communications,” along with technical leads, business liaisons, and customer-facing communicators. Assign these roles in advance and give them the authority to investigate, respond, and communicate.
- Risk and severity criteria:Not every incident is a five-alarm fire. Clearly outline what makes an incident minor versus major. Use simple criteria that can be evaluated quickly. For example, a single endpoint infected with adware may require less escalation than a suspected breach of regulated customer data.
- Communication protocols:Define how and when the team is notified, who is authorized to share details, and how to prevent leaks before the situation is contained. Document this ahead of time and make it part of your security playbook.
- Documentation:Keep the plan fully documented and updated. Everyone should know where to find it, how to follow it, and what the escalation path is.
- Continuous Introspection:After each incident, review what worked, what did not, and how to improve. Treat it as a “retrospective,” not a blame session.
Step Two: Assess the Situation and Triage
When an attack occurs, move quickly to understand what happened. Look for signs such as repeated failed login attempts, unusual network traffic, or unexpected registry changes. Identify the scope:</p
- Was one device targeted or an entire network?
- Was sensitive or regulated data accessed?
- Did the attacker attempt to exfiltrate data?
This initial triage is not about solving the problem immediately. It is about gathering enough information to direct the right resources to the right places without losing valuable time.
Step Three: Quarantine
Once you know which systems are affected, isolate them. Disable compromised accounts, disconnect affected devices from the network, and block malicious IPs. The goal is to stop the spread without shutting down unaffected critical systems.
Step Four: In-Depth Analysis
With the threat contained, it is time to dig deeper. Key questions include:
- Where did the attack originate?
- Was it internal or external?
- Were credentials compromised?
- Was the regulated data touched?
Logs are your best friend here, which is why having a strong security information and event management (SIEM) solution in place, such as SolarWinds® Security Event Manager, can make this process far faster and more accurate.
Document everything you find. In regulated industries, this documentation may be required for compliance with GDPR, HIPAA, PCI DSS, or other frameworks.
Step Five: Remediate
Use the findings from your analysis to fix the problem. This may involve:
- Resetting account privileges or passwords
- Restoring systems from clean backups
- Applying patches or configuration changes
- Removing malware or ransomware artifacts
Be thorough. Do not rush to restore normal operations before confirming the threat has been eliminated. A half-fix can leave a foothold for attackers to return.
Step Six: Restore
Once you are confident the threat is gone, bring systems back online. Patch and harden them before reconnecting. Restrict access to only those who need it.
Continue monitoring for activity patterns similar to the original attack. Sometimes attackers will test whether you are truly clean by probing again soon after remediation.
Step Seven: Review
Every incident is a learning opportunity. Hold a retrospective to discuss:
- What went well?
- Where did the process break down?
- What tools, people, or processes need improvement?
Document these lessons learned and update the incident response plan. Over time, these small adjustments will create a faster, more coordinated, and more resilient response process.
Keep Your Organization Ready for What Comes Next
Security is not just about prevention. Mistakes happen, and attacks will succeed. A strong incident response process gives your team the structure to react quickly, contain threats, and minimize the impact to the business.
When attackers are leveraging AI tools to accelerate the speed and scale of their campaigns, preparation matters more than ever. Build your plan now, test it regularly, and refine it after every incident. The investment will pay off when the next alert is real and the clock is ticking.
This blog was first published on March 6, 2019
