In today’s digital landscape, data breaches have become a common occurrence. Whether it’s due to human error, poor security practices or advanced threats, the potential impact of a breach can be devastating. That’s why managed service providers (MSPs) must have a well-defined game plan in place for remediation and restoration of service to hacked accounts.
A rapid response and thorough resolution process not only helps to minimize the damage and prevent further compromise but also helps to restore confidence in the security of the systems and data. What follows is a game plan that outlines a step-by-step approach for assessment, containment, remediation, system hardening, communication, post-breach review and data restoration.
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A Game Plan for Hacked Accounts
Initial Assessment: The first step in the remediation process is to assess the extent of the breach quickly, including the types of data accessed or compromised. This information will help determine the breach’s scope, and it will inform the process’ next steps.
To facilitate the assessment, it’s important to identify the accounts that have been hacked and collect as much information as possible about the breach. This information might include the type of attack, the origin of the attack, the time and duration of the attack, and all the systems and data impacted.
Containment: Once the extent of the breach has been assessed, the next step is to take immediate action to contain the breach. This is a critical step because it helps prevent the attacker from further accessing the systems or data.
Some common containment measures include isolating infected systems, disconnecting from the network and changing passwords. It’s also important to disconnect from any external systems, such as cloud storage or remote desktop services, to prevent the attacker from accessing those systems, as well.
Data Backup: Before proceeding with the remediation process, it’s essential to back up all critical data to ensure that it’s not lost. This will also help you to restore the systems and data to their pre-breach state.
It’s important to choose a secure backup location that is isolated from the infected systems to prevent the attacker from accessing the backup data. Additionally, it’s a good idea to verify the integrity of the backup data to ensure that it hasn’t been compromised.
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The Next Steps
Remediation: Once the data has been backed up, the next step is to remove all malicious software and clean up the systems to ensure that they’re no longer infected.
This might involve reinstalling the operating system, applications and data. It’s critical to use a trusted source for reinstallation — for example, the original software vendor or a reputable security vendor — to ensure that the systems are properly configured and secure.
System Hardening: One of the most important steps in the remediation process is to implement measures that will prevent similar attacks from happening in the future. This might include updating software and firmware, configuring firewalls and implementing intrusion-detection systems.
It’s also advisable to review and update security policies and procedures to ensure that they are up to date and effective. Additionally, it’s a good idea to conduct regular security assessments to identify and address any system vulnerabilities.
Communication: Throughout the remediation process, it’s essential to keep all affected parties informed about the breach and the actions being taken to remediate it. Provide regular updates. Moreover, be transparent about the breach’s extent and the steps you have taken to resolve it. This will help minimize confusion and restore confidence in the security of the systems and the data.
Additionally, be prepared to answer any questions or concerns that might arise. This includes communicating with customers, partners, stakeholders and any regulatory bodies involved.
Doing a Deep Dive
Post-Breach Review: After the breach has been contained and remediated, you’ll need to conduct a thorough post-breach review to assess the effectiveness of the remediation process, as well as to identify any areas of potential improvement.
This review should include a thorough examination of the breach itself, the actions taken to remediate it, and the impact of the breach on the systems and data. You should also review the effectiveness of the systems and processes in place to detect and respond to future breaches.
Data Restoration: Once the systems and data have been remediated and hardened, the final step is to restore the data. This might involve restoring the data from the backup or recreating the data from scratch. It’s important to verify the integrity of the restored data to ensure that it hasn’t been compromised. Additionally, it’s a good idea to regularly monitor the systems and data, looking to detect any signs of compromise.
A well-defined game plan for remediation and restoration of service for hacked accounts is essential for any MSP. A rapid response and a thorough resolution process help to minimize the damage, prevent further compromise, and restore confidence in the security of the systems and data.
A Cheat Sheet
The following cheat sheet can be used as a starting point for building out your own custom game plan.
This plan can be adapted to the specific needs and circumstances of your MSP. However, keep in mind that time is of the essence in the aftermath of a breach. Therefore, it is vital to act quickly and decisively to minimize the resulting damage.
- Initial Assessment: Quickly assess the extent of the breach and the types of data that has been accessed or compromised. Identify the accounts that have been hacked, and then collect as much information about the breach as possible.
- Containment: Take immediate action to contain the breach. This can include isolating infected systems, disconnecting from the network and changing passwords. This will prevent the attacker from further accessing the systems or data.
- Data Backup: Back up all the critical data to ensure that it’s not lost in the remediation process. This will also help you to restore the systems and data to their pre-breach state.
- Remediation: Remove all malicious software and clean up the systems to ensure that they’re no longer infected. This might involve reinstalling the operating system, applications and data.
- System Hardening: Implement measures to prevent similar attacks from happening in the future. This might include updating software and firmware, configuring firewalls and implementing intrusion-detection systems.
- Communication: Keep all affected parties informed about the breach and the actions you are taking to remediate it. Provide regular updates. Be fully transparent about the breach’s extent and the steps you’re taking to resolve it.
- Post-Breach Review: Conduct a review of the breach to determine what went wrong, how it occurred and how it can be prevented. This will help you to improve your security posture and reduce the risk of future breaches.
- Data Restoration: Restore the backed-up data to the systems and ensure that all the critical services are functioning as expected.
Mat Kordell is COO with CyberStreams.
