Sherlocked Security – Incident Post-Mortem / Lessons Learned

Turning Incidents into Opportunities for Improvement

1. Statement of Work (SOW)

Service Name: Incident Post-Mortem / Lessons Learned
Client Type: Enterprises, Government Agencies, SMBs, IT Teams
Service Model: Incident-Based Engagement, Retainer Support
Compliance Alignment: NIST SP 800-61, ISO/IEC 27001, GDPR, SOC 2, PCI-DSS, HIPAA

Key Objectives:

Analyze and review security incidents to understand root causes.
Improve security posture by learning from past incidents.
Develop actionable recommendations to prevent recurrence of similar incidents.
Create detailed reports for internal teams, management, and regulatory bodies.

2. Our Approach

[Incident Identification & Response] → [Post-Incident Review] → [Root Cause Analysis] → [Lessons Learned Documentation] → [Actionable Recommendations] → [Continuous Improvement]

3. Methodology

Incident Response Overview: Understanding the timeline of events and actions taken during the incident response. This helps clarify the effectiveness of the response and the challenges encountered.
Root Cause Analysis (RCA): Investigating the incident to identify the underlying vulnerabilities or failures that led to the breach or disruption. This analysis includes technical failures, human error, and process gaps.
Post-Incident Review (PIR): A detailed review session that brings together all stakeholders to discuss the incident, the response, and its outcomes.
Lessons Learned Documentation: Compiling insights from the incident to highlight what went well, what didn’t, and how improvements can be made.
Actionable Recommendations: Providing clear, actionable steps to mitigate similar risks in the future, including security controls, policies, and training improvements.
Reporting & Follow-Up: Preparing a detailed post-mortem report for internal use and compliance purposes, along with follow-up actions to ensure recommendations are implemented.

4. Deliverables to the Client

Incident Timeline: A detailed chronological account of the incident from detection to resolution.
Root Cause Analysis Report: A comprehensive document identifying the primary causes of the incident, including technical, procedural, and human factors.
Lessons Learned Documentation: A summary of the key lessons derived from the incident, focusing on both the positive and negative aspects of the response.
Actionable Recommendations: A list of recommendations designed to improve the organization’s security posture and prevent future incidents.
Post-Mortem Report: A formal, structured report that includes a full account of the incident, lessons learned, and an action plan for improving future security responses.
Continuous Improvement Plan: A set of strategic steps for improving security practices, policies, and response capabilities based on lessons learned.

5. What We Need from You (Client Requirements)

Incident Logs & Data: Provide all relevant logs, alerts, and data collected during the incident to ensure thorough analysis.
Incident Response Documentation: Share the details of the actions taken during the incident, including detection, containment, eradication, and recovery efforts.
Stakeholder Availability: Ensure availability of key personnel involved in the incident response for review and interviews during the post-mortem process.
Access to Systems & Tools: Provide access to the systems, applications, and security tools used during the incident for technical analysis.
Security Policies & Procedures: Share relevant internal security policies and procedures that were followed or bypassed during the incident response.

6. Tools & Technology Stack

Incident Tracking & Management:
- Jira: Issue tracking tool for managing incident response workflows and tracking actions taken.
- ServiceNow: IT Service Management tool used for tracking incidents and managing response procedures.
Root Cause Analysis Tools:
- Wireshark: Network protocol analyzer used for in-depth traffic analysis during incident review.
- ELK Stack: Elasticsearch, Logstash, and Kibana used for log aggregation, analysis, and visualization during root cause analysis.
- Splunk: Security information and event management (SIEM) tool for reviewing logs and detecting incident patterns.
Collaboration & Reporting:
- Miro: Collaborative online whiteboard for mapping out incident timelines and root cause analysis.
- Confluence: Documentation platform for creating post-mortem reports and lessons learned documentation.
Security Analytics & Forensics:
- FTK Imager: Digital forensics tool for acquiring and analyzing data from compromised systems.
- CrowdStrike: Endpoint detection and response (EDR) tool for gathering data on malware and threat actor activity.

7. Engagement Lifecycle

Incident Detection & Response: Collaborate with the client during the active incident phase to understand the response process and assist with containment and eradication.
Post-Incident Review: Hold a session with key stakeholders to evaluate the incident response effectiveness, identify gaps, and discuss outcomes.
Root Cause Analysis (RCA): Perform a detailed analysis to identify the root causes of the incident and determine contributing factors.
Lessons Learned: Document the lessons learned, highlighting areas of success and opportunities for improvement.
Actionable Recommendations: Provide a list of clear, actionable recommendations to prevent future incidents or improve the organization’s security posture.
Continuous Improvement: Develop a plan for implementing the recommendations and improving the overall security framework.

8. Why Sherlocked Security?

Feature	Sherlocked Advantage
Comprehensive Analysis	A thorough post-mortem analysis that includes technical, procedural, and human factors.
Root Cause Expertise	Extensive experience in identifying the underlying causes of security incidents.
Actionable Recommendations	Practical and easy-to-implement recommendations to improve security measures and response times.
Collaborative Approach	Involving key stakeholders in the review process to ensure a complete understanding of the incident.
Regulatory Compliance	Expertise in creating reports that meet industry and regulatory standards (e.g., GDPR, SOC 2).

9. Real-World Case Studies

Healthcare Organization – Ransomware Attack

Client: A regional healthcare provider experienced a ransomware attack that disrupted patient services.
Findings: The organization failed to patch a critical vulnerability, allowing attackers to gain access.
Outcome: We helped the client identify the root cause, implemented a patch management program, and recommended user training to avoid phishing attacks. The healthcare provider was able to recover swiftly and reduce their vulnerability to future attacks.

Financial Institution – Insider Threat

Client: A financial institution experienced an insider threat involving a disgruntled employee accessing sensitive customer data.
Findings: The incident was caused by insufficient user access controls and monitoring.
Outcome: We assisted the client in implementing tighter access control policies, better monitoring of user behavior, and training for employees on data privacy protocols. Our recommendations resulted in stronger safeguards and improved employee awareness.

10. SOP – Standard Operating Procedure

Incident Detection & Reporting: Ensure early detection and proper reporting of security incidents to enable a prompt response.
Incident Response: Follow established incident response protocols, including containment, eradication, and recovery.
Post-Incident Review: Conduct a thorough review with all involved stakeholders, documenting key events, decisions, and outcomes.
Root Cause Analysis: Use technical tools and expertise to determine the root cause of the incident and contributing factors.
Lessons Learned & Documentation: Summarize lessons learned, focusing on process improvement, policy gaps, and areas for training.
Action Plan Implementation: Develop an action plan based on the lessons learned, and implement necessary changes in security practices, tools, and training.
Follow-Up: Regularly monitor the effectiveness of implemented changes and adjust policies or procedures as needed.

11. Incident Post-Mortem Checklist

1. Pre-Incident Review

[ ] Incident Detection System: Ensure that monitoring and detection tools are in place to identify security incidents early.
[ ] Incident Response Plan: Review the existing incident response plan to ensure it is up-to-date and effective.
[ ] Stakeholder Readiness: Confirm that all stakeholders are aware of their roles in the incident response process.

2. During Incident Response

[ ] Containment: Quickly contain the incident to limit damage and spread.
[ ] Eradication: Remove the cause of the incident (e.g., malware, vulnerable access points).
[ ] Recovery: Restore affected systems and data, ensuring that all vulnerabilities are addressed.

3. Post-Incident Actions

[ ] Post-Incident Review: Conduct a session with all involved parties to evaluate the effectiveness of the response.
[ ] Root Cause Identification: Determine the root causes of the incident, including contributing factors.
[ ] Lessons Learned Documentation: Document insights from the incident to guide future improvements.
[ ] Actionable Recommendations: Develop actionable recommendations to enhance security practices.
[ ] Report Creation: Create a comprehensive post-mortem report summarizing the incident and response actions taken.

4. Continuous Improvement

[ ] Security Improvements: Implement necessary changes to security protocols, tools, and user training based on lessons learned.
[ ] Incident Response Plan Update: Update the incident response plan to address any gaps identified during the incident.
[ ] Ongoing Monitoring: Ensure continuous monitoring of systems and data to detect future incidents early.

Incident Post-Mortem_Lessons Learned