How to Respond to a Cyber Attack

Apr 7

It sucks but sometime’s disaster strikes and cyber attacks happen. It might be in the form of a ransomware attack that holds your files hostage or a phishing scam that results in the loss of your customer database. If you’ve been reading this blog closely, you’ve hopefully backed up your stuff and have an incident plan ready to roll out, but if you’re new to this, don’t panic. Follow the below steps to mitigate the damage.

1. Identification: The first step in responding to a cyber attack is identifying that one has occurred. This might come in the form of irregular system behavior or a notification from an antivirus program. Stay aware of the latest cyber attacks by signing up to our newsletter so you can hit the ground running.

2. Containment: Once a cyber attack has been identified, it's crucial to contain it as quickly as possible to limit the damage. This could involve disconnecting affected systems or devices from the network and changing passwords on other accounts and systems.

3. Assessment: After the attack is contained, assess the scope of the damage. What systems were affected? What data was compromised? This information can help guide your next steps.

4. Notification: If the attack resulted in a data breach involving sensitive customer or employee information, notify the affected individuals as soon as possible. Depending on your location and industry, you may also be legally required to report the incident to certain organisations or government bodies. The important thing is to not ignore it and hope nobody finds out. Transparency is key if you want to recover from damage to your reputation and client trust moving forward.

5. Recovery: Once the situation is under control, begin the recovery process. This might involve restoring systems or data from backups, cleaning infected systems, and strengthening security measures to prevent future attacks.

6. Analysis: Analyze the attack and your response to it. What could have been done to prevent it? How could your response improve? Use this analysis to improve your cybersecurity measures and response plan.

7. Implement Changes & Training: As stressful as attacks can be they can also be useful in shaping and improving your cybersecurity for the future so use the experience as a learning opportunity. Provide training for your team based on what was learned from the attack and the vulnerabilities that were exploited.

Avoid attacks in the first place with careful, but often simple, preparation. Receive a free starter guide to cybersecurity delivered to your inbox by signing up below.