Cybersecurity Essentials for Community Banks: A 4 part series from Acumen Technology’s interview with Tommy Rainbolt of Acumen Technology
CEO of Acumen Technology Sonny Clark sits down for a conversation with Acumen’s vCISO Tommy Rainbolt to discuss Cybersecurity and community banks. Each post in this four-part series offers community banks an in-depth look at cybersecurity best practices, from resilience and budgeting to incident response and culture-building. Part 3 of this 4 part series highlights how to have an effective response when a cybersecurity incident rises.
Part 3: Incident Response for Community Banks—Preparing for Quick, Effective Action
Sonny – If a community bank experiences a cyber incident, what are the first steps they should take?
Tommy – The first thing is containment. If you can, isolate affected systems immediately to stop the threat from spreading. Next, establish communication protocols. Designate one person as the “incident response captain,” whose job is to communicate updates. You don’t need everyone on the response team right away, but you do need to keep information flowing efficiently.
Sonny – How can community banks prepare for incidents before they happen?
Tommy – Tabletop exercises are excellent for this. They help banks simulate various scenarios and allow everyone to understand their roles and responsibilities. Incident response isn’t just an IT issue; it’s a whole-business issue, so having leaders from each department involved in these simulations is important.
Sonny – Are there any specific guidelines for incident response planning?
Tommy – FFIEC and NIST both stress the need for a formal incident response protocol. They’re not just looking for a plan on paper; they want to see that banks are actively testing and refining their response plans.
Sonny – Thanks, Tommy. Any closing thoughts on incident response?
Tommy – Remember, every second counts in an incident. A well-coordinated response plan saves time and resources, protecting your bank and its reputation.
