Risk Communication and Consultation: Describe who should be involved in the risk management process and how communication should take place.

Objective:

To provide students with an understanding of the practical aspects of responding to incidents and managing risks. They will develop an incident response plan and a risk management plan for a hypothetical company.

Project Descriiption:

Incident Response Plan (IRP):

Purpose: The plan should begin by explaining the purpose of the IRP. This section should include a brief descriiption of what the IRP is and its importance to the organization.
Scope: Identify the scope of the IRP, such as the type of incidents it covers, departments involved, etc.
Roles and Responsibilities: Define roles and responsibilities for the incident response team members. This includes the CISO, Incident Response Team Lead, IT staff, PR, Legal, etc.
Incident Classification: Propose a classification scheme for incidents that allows for a proportionate response.
Incident Response Process: Break down the process of responding to an incident into stages (e.g., preparation, identification, containment, eradication, recovery, and lessons learned) and describe each stage in detail.
Communication Plan: Outline the communication plan during an incident, including who to inform (internally and externally), when, and how.
Training and Testing: Propose a regular schedule for training employees and testing the IRP.
Risk Management Plan (RMP):
Purpose and Context: Briefly describe the purpose of the RMP and the context within which it exists.
Risk Identification: Discuss methods for identifying risks, such as brainstorming sessions, SWOT analysis, etc.
Risk Assessment: Propose a methodology for assessing risks. This could include identifying likelihood and impact, and then determining risk levels.
Risk Treatment: Describe how to respond to risks based on their risk levels, such as accepting, mitigating, transferring, or avoiding them.
Monitoring and Review: Discuss how and when the RMP should be reviewed and updated.
Risk Communication and Consultation: Describe who should be involved in the risk management process and how communication should take place.

Submission Format:

Incident Response Plan: A Word or PDF document following the provided IRP structure.
Risk Management Plan: A Word or PDF document following the provided RMP structure.
Evaluation Criteria:

Completion: All sections in both the IRP and the RMP are well-completed.
Comprehension: The plans should demonstrate a clear understanding of incident response and risk management principles.
Practicality: The plans should be practical and actionable, considering the provided company scenario.
Depth of Analysis: Higher marks are given for thorough and well-reasoned approaches to risk assessment and incident response.
Presentation: The documents should be well-organized and professionally presented.
Sample Plan Structures:

Incident Response Plan Structure:

Introduction
Purpose of the Plan
Scope
Plan Ownership and Maintenance
Definitions
Roles and Responsibilities
Incident Response Team
Individual Roles
External Support
Incident Identification
Identifying Potential Incidents
Reporting Process
Initial Assessment
Incident Classification
Classification Criteria
Classification Levels
Actions by Classification Level
Incident Response Process
Preparation
Identification
Containment
Eradication
Recovery
Lessons Learned
Communication and Notification
Internal Communication
External Communication
Training and Testing
Training Plan
Testing Plan
Schedule
Review and Continuous Improvement
Plan Review Schedule
Plan Update Process
Risk Management Plan Structure:

Introduction
Purpose of the Plan
Scope
Plan Ownership and Maintenance
Definitions
Risk Management Team
Team Structure
Roles and Responsibilities
Risk Identification
Risk Identification Methods
Risk Register
Risk Assessment
Assessment Criteria
Likelihood and Impact Matrix
Risk Level Determination
Risk Response
Response Strategies (Mitigate, Accept, Transfer, Avoid)
Risk Response Planning and Implementation
Risk Monitoring and Reporting
Risk Monitoring Activities
Risk Status Reporting
Risk Register Update Process
Risk Communication and Consultation
Internal Communication
External Communication
Plan Review and Continuous Improvement
Plan Review Schedule
Plan Update Process
Hypothetical Company: CyberSecure Inc.

CyberSecure Inc. is a rapidly growing cybersecurity startup based in Austin, Texas. The company provides cybersecurity consulting services and develops proprietary security software for businesses across the United States.

Despite its focus on cybersecurity, CyberSecure Inc. has never had a formal Incident Response Plan (IRP) or Risk Management Plan (RMP). As the company grows, so does its client base and the variety of sensitive data it handles. From financial records to clients’ intellectual property, the startup is becoming a tempting target for cybercriminals.

The company operates in a hybrid IT environment. Critical business applications and data are hosted in the cloud, while some sensitive information is stored on-premises. A team of 25 employees work in-house, and another 30 employees are distributed across various locations. The workforce is expected to grow by 50% in the next year.

The company leadership has realized the criticality of having formal plans in place to respond to incidents and manage risks. They have tasked your team with creating an IRP and RMP for CyberSecure Inc.

Key considerations for your plans should include:

The variety of data types that CyberSecure Inc. handles, each with different sensitivity levels.
The hybrid IT environment and the need to protect both cloud-based and on-premise assets.
The distributed nature of the workforce, which might increase the attack surface, and the associated risks with remote work.
The planned growth of the company, which may introduce new risks and vulnerabilities.
Compliance with relevant cybersecurity regulations and standards.
The leadership expects your IRP and RMP to be practical and actionable. They should help the company to respond efficiently and effectively to incidents, manage its risk exposure, and support its growth while protecting sensitive data.