Msp Incident Response Plan Template

Standard Operating Procedure: MSP Incident Response Plan (IRP)

Document ID: TR-SEC-IRP-001
Effective Date: 2023-10-27
Version: 1.0.0
Review Cadence: Semi-Annual (or post-incident)

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1. Executive Summary & Purpose

This document establishes the standardized framework for Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to detect, contain, eradicate, and recover from security incidents across multi-tenant environments. The objective is to minimize Mean Time to Recovery (MTTR), preserve digital evidence, and maintain client trust through structured orchestration.

2. Scope & Prerequisites

• Scope: All managed endpoints, cloud infrastructure, network appliances, and identities under Template Registry management.
• Prerequisites:
  • Access to RMM (Remote Monitoring & Management) and PSA (Professional Services Automation) tools.
  • Off-site, immutable backup verification.
  • Documented Client Communications Plan.
  • Pre-provisioned Emergency Access Credentials (PAM).

3. Roles & Responsibilities (RACI Matrix)

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4. Step-by-Step Procedure

Phase 1: Detection & Analysis

• Validate alert source via SIEM/EDR dashboard.
• Establish a dedicated communication channel (Encrypted Slack/Teams).
• Determine incident severity (Low, Medium, High, Critical).
• Snapshot affected VMs/Disks for forensic preservation.

Phase 2: Containment

• Isolate compromised hosts via EDR/Network ACLs.
• Force reset of compromised user credentials.
• Disable VPN sessions associated with the affected account.
• Implement "Read-Only" mode on critical databases if data exfiltration is suspected.

Phase 3: Eradication

• Purge malicious artifacts (scripts, binary payloads, scheduled tasks).
• Patch vulnerabilities that facilitated the initial entry point.
• Perform full malware scan across the environment.
• Verify integrity of backup snapshots.

Phase 4: Recovery

• Restore data from known-good, immutable backups.
• Perform gradual service reintegration into production.
• Enable enhanced monitoring (Verbose logging) for 72 hours post-recovery.
• Notify stakeholders of service restoration.

Phase 5: Post-Incident Activity

• Conduct a Blame-Free Post-Mortem.
• Update client documentation and internal runbooks.
• Archive all logs and communications for compliance/forensics.

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5. Quality Assurance & Pro-Tips

Best Practices:

• Zero Trust Enforcement: Assume the perimeter is breached; verify every internal process call.
• Evidence Handling: Never reboot a machine before dumping RAM if forensic analysis is required.
• The "Golden Rule": Never perform remediation on the same network that is being actively monitored by the attacker.

Metric Thresholds:

• MTTD (Mean Time to Detect): < 15 minutes.
• MTTC (Mean Time to Contain): < 60 minutes.
• Recovery SLA: Per individual client contract (Standard: < 4 hours).

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6. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: Should I disconnect the internet during an active ransomware event? A: Yes. Unless the attacker has demonstrated capability for self-propagating persistence that bypasses traditional air-gapping, isolating the network prevents command-and-control (C2) heartbeats and stops further encryption/exfiltration.

Q: What is the first priority when an incident involves a PII data leak? A: Notify Legal Counsel. Do not communicate with the client or authorities until your legal/compliance officer has authorized the disclosure template, as this triggers specific regulatory reporting clocks (e.g., GDPR/HIPAA).

Q: How do we handle "noisy" alerts during a confirmed breach? A: Filter for high-fidelity signals (EDR/MDR alerts). Suppress secondary alerts (e.g., "CPU spike on VM") that are symptoms of the remediation process rather than the threat itself.