In the digital age, the question isn’t whether your organization will face a cybersecurity incident but when. With cutting-edge tools and techniques, threat actors are challenging security in multiple ways.
Cybercriminals are using sophisticated malware like ransomware, Trojans, and spyware to attack organizations, often leveraging social engineering tactics like phishing to gain a foothold. Threat actors also utilize distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks to bring down the networks companies rely on.
Threats aren’t only external, though. Malicious and careless insiders can cause significant damage to an organization’s security and data integrity.
As recent attacks show, no one is safe. Not even high-profile organizations. This is where your incident response plan comes in. A good incident response plan is about getting ahead of the wave before it causes significant damage.
Read this guide for more on:
Here is a quick incident response definition: Incident response is the process of detecting, investigating, and responding to security incidents by utilizing different types of cybersecurity technologies. The objective of incident response is to nullify the impact of a cybersecurity event and reduce the risk of it repeating by optimizing threat response.
Here are some hallmarks of a good incident response system:
Many organizations use top Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), Managed Detection and Response (MDR), and Extended Detection and Response (XDR) tools to protect endpoints, gain threat intelligence, and enhance incidence response. Read about EDR vs MDR vs XDR tools to learn which technology matches your organization’s incident response needs best.
Hackers hijack a large number of computers and devices to use their resources for a DDoS attack. In such an attack, they can overwhelm an organization’s network with traffic, impacting workflow and productivity. A DDoS attack can also negatively impact an organization’s reputation and its ability to serve its clients.
Malware is an umbrella term for different kinds of malicious software that seek to harm a system. Common types of malware attacks against organizations include Trojans, spyware, keyloggers, and insidious software that opens backdoors or harvests credentials. For example, the Supernova malware discovered on SolarWinds Orion server was designed to gather cached credentials used by the appliance server.
Ransomware is the malware of choice for many extortionists on the Internet. It’s essential for organizations to invest in resources that protect against ransomware because it hijacks computers in exchange for a fee.
Some ransomware attackers also engage in data exfiltration. After being paid to remove ransomware, they may still secretly sell stolen confidential data on the Dark Web.
Phishing attacks typically use emails that look legitimate and carry attachments hiding malware. Phishing attacks may also try to trick users into opening unsafe links and websites, sending money, or sharing confidential information. Some spear-phishing attacks are engineered to look very convincing. A threat actor may study company communication and publicly available employee details to design an authentic-looking campaign.
The goal of many threat actors is to steal uncredited data for blackmail, resale, financial fraud, or to propel other cybersecurity attacks.
Malicious insiders can include spies hired by rival organizations or state-sponsored agents. Malicious insiders can steal data, intellectual property, and other sensitive assets, resulting in grave consequences for an organization. Insider threats can also include employees who make security mistakes due to a lack of training or concentration.
A supply chain attack is all about using the weakest component in a supply chain, such as a vendor, to attack a target. For example, a Trojan-credential stealer on a vendor’s software may easily travel to a client’s systems undetected. According to IBM, only 32 percent of organizations have incident response plans for supply chain attacks despite their increasing rate of incidence.
Your organization needs a good incident response plan, framework, and security solutions to effectively respond to different types of incidents.
Your incident response plan is a documented series of procedures that outline the steps required for an effective response to a security incident.
Here are six phases of a good incident response framework:
Incident response teams
An incident response team is a group of trained professionals that’s responsible for responding to and managing security incidents within an organization. An incident response team may include IT professionals such as managers, researchers, and analysts. The HR and legal departments may also have incident response representatives.
The incident response team detects and responds to incidents by using analysis, containment and remediation tools and strategies. It’s also responsible for restoring systems. Some members of an incident response team are tasked with communicating with stakeholders such as employees, investors, and clients.
Managed Detection and Response (MDR) solution is a managed security service driven by a team of cybersecurity experts that serve as an extension of the organization's IT security team. Besides providing 24/7 monitoring and human-led investigation, one of the core benefits of MDR security includes powerful, expedited incident response. Through IR playbooks, highly skilled MDR analysts are agile, work quickly, and respond to suspicious activity without hesitation.
Read more: What is MDR?
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) software can protect endpoints such as laptops, desktops, servers, mobile phones, and tablets from different types of security threats. Top EDR platforms will detect, investigate, and respond to various cybersecurity incidents in real time.
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) is a kind of software solution that can collect and analyze security event information from endpoints and applications. IT teams use SIEM solutions to gain intelligence and visibility and reduce the risk of security incidents.
Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) solutions can help automate the detection of security issues. They can also help manage vulnerabilities and security workflows. The best SOAR software can integrate with other security solutions.
Extended Detection and Response (XDR) solutions merge alerts by unifying previously gathered data from various cybersecurity tools. Businesses that process multiple alerts from many different existing security tools can benefit from XDR solutions by enhancing the speed of their incident response.
User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) tools analyze user and entity behavior within an IT environment from logs, traffic, and activity to identify threats. UEBA tools are powerful and can help find anomalies quickly.
Attackers sometimes try to breach security by utilizing application vulnerabilities or using techniques that attack applications. Application Security Management (ASM) manages security risks in applications and can reduce an organization’s exposure to attackers.
Cybersecurity companies provide various incident response services. For example, managed IT security services providers may assist with different or all phases of an incident response lifecycle, such as preparation, detection, or remediation. Some companies also offer services that cover training, readiness assessment, analysis, and vulnerability scanning. Learn about Malwarebytes Incident Response and our propriety Linking Engine technology that removes all traces of malware left behind.
It’s a good idea to automate incident response due to its time-sensitive nature by using the right methods and technologies that help triage alerts, identify incidents, and complete certain tasks, like blocking IP addresses. Automating incident response also makes the process less labor-intensive. In some organizations, it’s impossible for a security team to investigate and respond to every incident as it happens.
Here are some tools and methods that can help automate incident response:
The 5 Whys is a somewhat antiquated concept that helps a problem solver reach the root cause of a problem by asking questions starting with “why” as required. Let’s look at an example of 5 whys in incident response:
Problem: An employee downloaded ransomware on a company desktop computer.
1. Why? A: The employee opened a phishing email.
2. Why? A: The employee didn’t notice the suspicious email address or grammatical errors. The email also bypasses security filters.
3. Why? A: The employee had a lapse of concentration, and the company lacked security tools.
4. Why? A: The organization hasn’t invested enough resources in training and security solutions.
5. Why? A: The organization didn’t appreciate the consequences of a cybersecurity attack.
The incident response framework is a structured framework that helps organizations respond to incidents effectively. An incident response lifecycle involves preparation, detection, containment, remediation, testing, and post-incident analysis.
Your organization’s IT team and any managed-security services provider are primarily responsible for incident response. But other departments also play a crucial role in incident response. For example, organization leaders are responsible for ensuring that the incident response system is modern and robust. Your legal department may audit your incident response to ensure it satisfies legal and regulatory obligations. Even your business partners, such as contractors, vendors and other stakeholders, play their part.
Your organization’s IT team and any managed-security services provider are primarily responsible for incident response. But other departments also play a crucial role in incident response. For example, organization leaders are responsible for ensuring that the incident response system is modern and robust. Your legal department may audit your incident response to ensure it satisfies legal and regulatory obligations. Even your business partners, such as contractors, vendors and other stakeholders, play their part.
Select your language