Incident response

Incident response covers all organisational and technical measures an organisation uses to react to security incidents. The process typically follows an established phase model, such as the NIST model (Preparation, Detection and Analysis, Containment/Eradication and Recovery, Post-Incident Activity) or the equivalent approach in BSI Standard 200-4. The goal is to detect an incident early, assess it correctly, contain it, eradicate it and learn from it in order to reduce the likelihood and impact of future incidents.

A core element of effective incident response is a documented incident response plan with clear roles, escalation paths, reporting chains and communication rules. Organisations often set up a dedicated Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT or SOC) that classifies incidents, conducts forensic analysis and coordinates containment. Incident response is closely interlinked with emergency and business continuity management as well as disaster recovery procedures, so that the availability of critical processes is maintained even during serious incidents.

From a regulatory perspective, incident response has gained considerable importance through the NIS2 Directive and its national implementation. Essential and important entities must maintain appropriate measures for handling security incidents and are subject to staggered reporting obligations to the competent authority (in Germany, the BSI): an early warning within 24 hours, an incident notification within 72 hours and a final report after one month at the latest. Top management bears responsibility for the implementation and effectiveness of these measures, which is why incident response is a central building block of an information security management system (ISMS).