Source: [Cynet.com](https://www.cynet.com/incident-response/incident-response-sans-the-6-steps-in-depth/)
Retrieved: November 28, 2022

Related:
- [ISO 27002 5.24 Information security incident management planning and preparation](../ISO27x/OST/27002/EN/a-5.24-Information-security-incident-management-planning-and-preparation.md)
- [Ransomware Playbook](../../Sparks/Ransomware%20Playbook.md)

Six steps:

1. [Preparation](SANS%20Incident%20Response%20step%201%20Preparation.md)—review and codify an organizational security policy, perform a risk assessment, identify sensitive assets, define which are critical security incidents the team should focus on, and build a Computer Security [Incident Response Team](https://www.cynet.com/incident-response/incident-response-team-a-blueprint-for-success/) (CSIRT).
2. [Identification](SANS%20Incident%20Response%20step%202%20Identification.md)—monitor IT systems and detect deviations from normal operations, and see if they represent actual security incidents. When an incident is discovered, collect additional evidence, establish its type and severity, and document everything.
3. [Containment](SANS%20Incident%20Response%20step%203%20Containment.md)—perform short-term containment, for example by isolating the network segment that is under attack. Then focus on long-term containment, which involves temporary fixes to allow systems to be used in production, while rebuilding clean systems.
4. [Eradication](SANS%20Incident%20Response%20step%204%20Eradication.md)—remove malware from all affected systems, identify the root cause of the attack, and take action to prevent similar attacks in the future.
5. [Recovery](SANS%20Incident%20Response%20step%205%20Recovery.md)—bring affected production systems back online carefully, to prevent additional attacks. Test, verify and monitor affected systems to ensure they are back to normal activity.
6. [Lessons learned](SANS%20Incident%20Response%20step%206%20Lessons%20learned.md)—no later than two weeks from the end of the incident, perform a retrospective of the incident. Prepare complete documentation of the incident, investigate the incident further, understand what was done to contain it and whether anything in the incident response process could be improved.

