In this ultimate how to implement guide to ISO 27001 Annex A 5.24 Information Security Incident Management Planning and Preparation, you will learn directly from an ISO 27001 Lead Auditor:
- The requirement of the control
- The required implementation steps
- The minimum requirement
I am Stuart Barker, the ISO 27001 Lead Auditor and author of the Ultimate ISO 27001 Toolkit.
Using over 30 years of industry experience across hundreds of audits, I’m giving you the exact templates, walkthroughs, and practical examples you need to achieve ISO 27001 certification.
Table of contents
- ISO 27001 Annex A 5.24 Information Security Incident Management Planning and Preparation Implementation Checklist
- 1. Draft a Physical Information Security Incident Management Policy
- 2. Form an Internal Incident Response Team (IRT)
- 3. Define Manual Incident Classification and Escalation Criteria
- 4. Establish Out-of-Band Communication Channels
- 5. Configure Local Forensic Logging Baselines
- 6. Create Technical ‘Playbooks’ for Common Attack Vectors
- 7. Secure a Forensic Evidence Kit
- 8. Conduct a Manual Tabletop Simulation
- 9. Formalise External Reporting Obligations
- 10. Implement a Post-Incident Review (PIR) Process
- ISO 27001 Annex A 5.24 SaaS / GRC Platform Implementation Failure Checklist
Implementing ISO 27001 Annex A 5.24 is the strategic process of establishing a resilient framework for identifying and responding to security breaches. The primary implementation requirement centers on documented technical playbooks and physical preparedness, delivering the business benefit of minimized operational downtime and legal regulatory compliance.
ISO 27001 Annex A 5.24 Information Security Incident Management Planning and Preparation Implementation Checklist
Use this implementation checklist to achieve compliance with ISO 27001 Annex A 5.24. Genuine preparedness is forged in local command-line dry runs and physical “war room” binders, not within the sanitised confines of a SaaS notification dashboard.
1. Draft a Physical Information Security Incident Management Policy
Control Requirement: Establish a documented policy and supporting procedures for managing information security incidents.
Required Implementation Step: Open your local document editor and draft a specific policy that defines what constitutes an ‘incident’ versus an ‘event’. Print a physical copy and place it in an ‘Emergency Response’ binder that is accessible even if your primary network is encrypted by ransomware.
Minimum Requirement: A version-controlled policy document signed by the CISO and stored in a secure, offline location.
2. Form an Internal Incident Response Team (IRT)
Control Requirement: Assign specific roles and responsibilities for incident management activities.
Required Implementation Step: Do not just list ‘IT’ as the owner. Manually assign specific individuals from IT, Legal, HR, and Communications to the team; document their direct office phone numbers and home contact details in a private, encrypted file.
Minimum Requirement: A formal ‘Contact Matrix’ identifying the Lead Incident Handler and secondary deputies.
3. Define Manual Incident Classification and Escalation Criteria
Control Requirement: Establish criteria for prioritising and escalating incidents based on impact and urgency.
Required Implementation Step: Create a physical 3×3 matrix mapping business impact against urgency. Manually define the ‘Red Alert’ triggers that require immediate board-level notification, bypassing the ticket-queue mentality of most GRC tools.
Minimum Requirement: A documented classification table that allows any staff member to identify a ‘Critical’ incident in under 60 seconds.
