Table of Contents
DON’T PANIC AND STAY CALM
As a business leader, you will face many unforeseen challenges. Consider your business getting hacked as the ultimate test of your leadership. It is normal to feel angry, stressed, and frustrated when dealing with such a situation. However, as a leader, you must ensure that your team handles this situation with a calm mindset.
Hacking is never an ideal situation, but it is not the end of the world. With the proper communication, you can align your team to focus on finding the solution rather than focusing on the problem. If dealing with ransomware, investigate these resources before deciding to pay the ransom.
IDENTIFY THE HACK
While some hacks are easy to spot, others are covert. Ransomware, certain malware, DDoS are apparent as they put an immediate stop to the business. On the other hand, data breaches, spyware, and other threats are difficult to determine.
If your systems are suddenly slow or crashing, strange network patterns, huge data exfiltration are signs that you are a victim of a cyber attack.
After confirming that your business has been hacked, categorize the hack as either Event, Incident, or Data breach.
Events:
Defined as “any occurrence in the system or the network,” events can comprise unauthorized access to sensitive information, firewall blocking an attempt to connect, execution of malware that can have negative consequences on the network.
Incident:
Any event that goes against the security policy is an incident—for example, a lost thumb drive or mobile phone, missing files, and more.
Data Breach:
The attacker is stealing sensitive information such as customer data, credit card information, intellectual property, and more. This type of hack is the worst possible scenario, and businesses must take this seriously. It is important to note that the definition of a data breach is dependent on the legal descriptions as per the state and federal breach laws.
ASSESS THE SCOPE OF THE COMPROMISE
After determining the type of hack that your business is experiencing, it is essential to scope out the impact this hack has had on your business. By assessing the devices, accounts, and data that have been affected, it will be easier for you to recover from the hack and comply with government regulations.
CONTAIN THE HACK
Assessing the scope of the compromise will help you understand how much of your business network has been affected. To prevent the hack from spreading across your entire network, disconnect the affected devices from the network and other devices. It would be best to reconnect the affected devices to the network only after you have neutralized the cyber threat.
For instance, if you were a victim of a ransomware attack, and restore your systems before removing the malicious software, you will again become a victim of the attack!
FOLLOW YOUR INCIDENT RESPONSE PLAN
If you have an incident response plan ready, it is best to follow that plan properly to recover from the attack. These plans have already outlined the responsibilities of each employee and how best to recover from this dreaded situation.
However, if you do not have an incident response plan, we suggest that you contact the following local government offices: FBI, IC3, FTC, and communicate that you are a victim of a hack. Furthermore, to protect your business from a cyber attack in the future, it is best to develop an incident response plan at the earliest.
CONTACT YOUR COUNSEL
Whether internal or external, connecting with legal counsel regarding the hack on your business is vital for your business’s survival. The council has the experience to deal with this issue and help you navigate any legal hurdles that might arise due to the hack.
Every nation and state is introducing stringent cybersecurity and privacy laws that can lead to hefty penalties on small businesses if not compliant. Hence, as a business owner, you must seek counsel to ensure you are safe from such liabilities.
CONTACT YOUR INSURANCE PROVIDER
If you have cyber insurance, it is best to contact the person immediately so that you can follow all the proper procedures to get the maximum coverage from your policy. If you do not have cyber insurance, it is best to start now.
IMPROVE YOUR SECURITY FOR THE FUTURE
If you did not think you needed cybersecurity before, we hope that a hack will change your perception of cybersecurity. After all, the best way to mitigate a hack is to prevent it. Implement the baseline cybersecurity by enforcing strong passwords, network segmentation, regular security awareness training, regular backups, and enabling auto-update on all your devices.
These measures alone will protect you against most cyber threats and tremendously improve your business’s security posture.