Course Content
Module 1: Introduction to Cybersecurity Incident Response
This module highlights the significance of incident response, explores various cybersecurity incidents, and introduces the critical roles within an effective Incident Response Team (IRT).
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Module 2: Incident Response Lifecycle
This module covers the phases of the incident response lifecycle, from preparation and identification to containment, eradication, recovery, and lessons learned, ensuring a structured approach to handling cybersecurity incidents.
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Module 3: Preparation for Incident Response
This module focuses on preparing for cybersecurity incidents, including establishing policies, creating an incident response plan, setting up tools and technologies, and training response teams for effective readiness.
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Module 4: Identifying Cybersecurity Incidents
This module focuses on recognizing cybersecurity incidents, understanding indicators of compromise (IoCs), and utilizing monitoring systems, including SIEM, for effective incident detection and timely reporting.
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Module 5: Effective Incident Containment
This module focuses on strategies for effectively containing cybersecurity incidents, including isolating affected systems, maintaining communication, and preventing further escalation to minimize damage and impact.
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Module 6: Eradication of Threats
This module focuses on identifying the root cause of cybersecurity incidents, removing threats such as malware, securing configurations, and ensuring thorough verification of threat elimination to restore system integrity.
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Module 7: Recovery and Post-Incident Steps
This module focuses on restoring affected systems and services after an incident, ensuring system integrity, validating recovery efforts, and rebuilding confidence with stakeholders through effective post-incident procedures.
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Module 8: Lessons Learned and Continuous Improvement
This module focuses on conducting post-incident reviews, updating response plans, enhancing security measures, and leveraging lessons learned to continuously improve incident response strategies and organizational resilience.
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Module 9: Legal, Compliance, and Reporting
This module explains the legal obligations and compliance requirements during incident response, including reporting standards, communicating with authorities, and managing public and media interactions during a cybersecurity incident.
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Module 11: Incident Response in Different Environments
This module explores incident response strategies for different environments, including on-premises systems, cloud platforms, and mobile devices, with a focus on adapting techniques for specific threats like ransomware.
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Module 12: Simulating and Testing Incident Response
This module focuses on testing and simulating incident response through tabletop exercises, red team vs. blue team simulations, and penetration testing to evaluate and improve response readiness and effectiveness.
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Cybersecurity Incident Response Basics
About Lesson

Key Indicators of Cybersecurity Incidents

To identify a cybersecurity incident, organizations must look for specific signs or indicators of compromise (IOCs). These are pieces of evidence that point to potential malicious activities occurring within an organization’s IT environment. IOCs can be categorized into:

 

Network Indicators:

  • Unusual traffic patterns: Unexplained spikes in network traffic, especially outbound traffic to external servers, could indicate data exfiltration or a DoS attack.
  • Suspicious IP addresses: Connections to known malicious IP addresses or unusual foreign IP addresses could indicate a remote attacker.
  • Unusual port activity: Attacks often exploit specific ports to gain unauthorized access to systems. Monitoring open ports and associated traffic can help identify malicious behavior.

 

Host Indicators:

  • System crashes: Unexplained system crashes or slowdowns may signal that malware has infected the system.
  • Unusual file changes: Unexpected modifications to system files or executables could indicate that malware is altering the system’s behavior.
  • Unauthorized access attempts: Multiple failed login attempts or suspicious logins from unfamiliar locations could indicate brute force attacks or credential stuffing.

 

Application Indicators:

  • Changes to application configurations: Attackers often modify application configurations to exploit vulnerabilities.
  • Error messages: Repeated or unusual error messages may be the result of malware manipulating the application.

 

User Behavior Indicators:

  • Abnormal user activity: This could involve a user accessing files or systems they normally don’t interact with, potentially indicating a compromised account.
  • Out-of-office user logins: If employees or administrators are logging in from unusual locations or outside business hours, it might indicate unauthorized access.

 

Environmental Indicators:

  • Unusual system resource usage: An unexpected increase in CPU, memory, or disk usage may indicate malware activity such as crypto-mining or the use of malicious processes.
  • Presence of unknown files or processes: If new or suspicious files are found, especially in system directories, this can indicate an attack or compromise.