Strengthening incident resilience: Guidance for organisations

Resilience

Incident resilience is critical for organisations to withstand and recover from cyber security breaches and other disruptive events. Achieving resilience is not about reacting to an incident but involves comprehensive preparation, structured response, and continual refinement. To build effective incident resilience, organisations should focus on key areas including insurance, legislative compliance, planning, training, and defining clear roles and responsibilities.

Insurance as a safety net

A thorough review of your cyber insurance policy is essential to ensure it adequately reflects your organisation’s risk profile and operational needs. Coverage should address a broad spectrum of potential issues, from data breaches and ransomware attacks to business interruptions. Additionally, it’s important to identify any exclusions, such as those related to state-sponsored attacks, and adjust the policy as your organisation evolves. Regularly reassessing your insurance ensures that your coverage aligns with new threats and organisational changes.

Navigating legislative requirements

Compliance with legislative and regulatory requirements is a foundational element of incident resilience. In Australia, laws such as the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and sector-specific standards like APRA CPS 234 impose clear obligations on organisations to protect sensitive data and report breaches. Understanding and adhering to these requirements, including mandatory breach reporting, can minimise the risk of penalties and reputational damage. Regular audits of your systems and processes are critical to maintaining compliance.

The power of planning: incident response plans

An effective incident response plan (IRP) is more than just a document—it is a blueprint for action. A well-constructed IRP should outline key phases of response, including detection, containment, eradication, and recovery, while integrating seamlessly with business continuity and disaster recovery strategies. However, plans should never be static. Regular updates, driven by organisational changes or insights from past incidents, are necessary to ensure relevance and efficacy.

Beyond planning: playbooks

Incident playbooks bring IRPs to life by providing step-by-step guidance for addressing specific scenarios. Whether it’s a ransomware attack, phishing campaign, or insider threat, playbooks ensure clarity in high-pressure situations. They detail actions, escalation procedures, and communication protocols, offering a practical roadmap for responders. For maximum value, these playbooks should be distributed across teams, tested regularly, and updated as threats evolve.

Testing resilience through exercises

Exercises are an indispensable tool for evaluating and improving incident readiness. Tabletop exercises simulate incidents in a controlled environment, encouraging decision-makers to think critically about their responses. They also foster collaboration among diverse stakeholders, such as IT, legal, communications, and executive leadership. Red and blue team exercises add a more technical layer, with red teams simulating attacks and blue teams defending against them. These exercises not only expose vulnerabilities but also enhance defensive strategies through constructive feedback.

A holistic and adaptive approach

Incident resilience is not achieved overnight—it is the result of an iterative process that combines planning, testing, and ongoing refinement. Organisations should embed resilience into their culture by ensuring insurance coverage is comprehensive, compliance requirements are met, and response plans are tested and understood by all stakeholders. With defined roles and strong partnerships, organisations can better withstand and recover from incidents, safeguarding both operations and reputation.


Kat McCrabb

Kat McCrabb

22 Oct 2024

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