Ensuring Operational Continuity During a Cyber Breach: The Role of Secure Out-of-Band Collaboration
What happens when the tools you rely on to manage a crisis become part of the problem? During a cyber breach, compromised communication channels can stall your incident response, expose critical remediation processes to adversaries, and create regulatory and reputational risks for your company. For critical infrastructure, where even minimal downtime can have catastrophic consequences, secure communication and a formal out-of-band collaboration plan is an absolute necessity.
Secure out-of-band collaboration tools provide a critical lifeline in such moments. By integrating these tools into proactive and reactive cybersecurity strategies, organizations can effectively safeguard sensitive communications, mitigate risks, and ensure compliance, even under the pressure of a breach.
Anticipating Threats with a Left of Bang Mentality
“Left of Bang” represents the proactive measures taken before a crisis to minimize vulnerabilities and reduce potential damage. These actions ensure that sensitive communications are secured and that incident response plans are robust and ready to deploy.
Proactive preparation is critical because one of the most significant challenges organizations face is the delay in detecting breaches. According to the IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2023, it takes an average of 277 days to identify and contain a breach. This prolonged exposure gives adversaries ample time to exploit executive communications, internal procedures, and incident response plans.
The SolarWinds breach is a stark reminder of how delayed detection, combined with weak internal controls and insecure communication channels, can result in devastating operational and reputational consequences.
To address these risks, organizations must adopt proactive measures, including:
- Shielding Sensitive Communications: Tools like ArmorText’s Secure Out of Band Collaboration™ create secure, isolated environments for critical information, ensuring adversaries cannot intercept or misuse it.
- Enhancing Incident Response Plans: Pre-configured secure communication channels with preloaded documents (e.g., incident response plans, org charts, insurance policies) ensure that vital resources are immediately accessible during a crisis.
- Practicing for Real-World Scenarios: Tabletop exercises and simulations help teams master out-of-band tools, reducing delays when a breach occurs.
By integrating secure out-of-band collaboration into daily operations, organizations can mitigate the impact of breaches and stay prepared for emerging threats.
Taking Control: Right of Bang
“Right of Bang” refers to the moments after a breach when steps are taken to contain damage, remediate vulnerabilities, and restore operations. Secure communication becomes the foundation for an effective response during this high-pressure period.
However, traditional communication tools often fail to meet the demands of a post-breach environment. Attackers frequently exploit vulnerabilities in platforms like Teams, Google, or Zoom to monitor and disrupt incident response efforts. A clear example is the Western Digital breach, where adversaries infiltrated communication channels, eavesdropped on discussions, and created chaos among response teams.
These weaknesses are compounded by challenges such as compromised Identity Providers (IDPs), shared credentials, and multi-factor authentication (MFA) fatigue, which allow attackers to gain unauthorized access to sensitive conversations and impede recovery efforts.
Secure out-of-band collaboration tools address these risks by providing:
- Independence from Compromised Systems: Tools like ArmorText’s Secure Out of Band Collaboration™ operate separately from affected networks, ensuring secure communication channels remain functional even during a breach.
- Comprehensive Audit Trails: Tamper-proof logs simplify compliance reporting and offer a defensible record for legal proceedings.
- Efficient Onboarding: Streamlined processes allow organizations to quickly integrate internal and external stakeholders without creating new vulnerabilities.
Why Secure Out-of-Band Collaboration Is a Must-Have
Maintaining operational continuity during a breach requires safeguarding vital processes and equipping your organization to act swiftly and effectively, even in the face of disruption. Secure out-of-band collaboration bridges the gap between readiness and execution, enabling organizations to mitigate risks, respond decisively, and minimize disruption.
Here’s how this approach strengthens your organization:
- Ensures Operational Continuity
- Enables IT and security teams to execute incident response plans without delay or wasted time.
- Provides a secure channel for executives to coordinate with legal, regulatory, and media stakeholders.
- Maintains uninterrupted communication with supply chain partners to fulfill contractual obligations and preserve trust.
- Streamlines Incident Response
- Offers immediate access to preloaded documents like incident response plans, contact lists, and network diagrams.
- Ensures that communication channels are secure to prevent adversary interference during critical moments.
- Eliminates confusion with predefined workflows that guide incident response teams effectively.
- Mitigates Legal and Regulatory Risks
- Aligns with frameworks like CIRCIA (Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022) to ensure compliance.
- Creates secure, tamper-proof logs that support defensible legal and regulatory reporting.
By maintaining uninterrupted operations and protecting critical processes, secure out-of-band collaboration fortifies your organization’s resilience during even the most challenging cyber events.
Stay Resilient, Act Decisively
Cyber breaches are inevitable, but disruption isn’t. ArmorText’s Secure Out of Band Collaboration™ keeps your team connected, compliant, and ready to respond under pressure.
Protect your operations. Schedule your personalized demo today and see how ArmorText can help ensure your team is prepared for anything.