Setting Up An Operational Resilience Framework

You are in charge of disaster response and recovery at your organization and you have just been hit with a wiperware attack. Your team has executed its playbook to retrieve data from your back-up files.  However, all of your organization’s systems, applications, networks, and devices are inaccessible.

You quickly realize that by following traditional disaster recovery practices you have focused almost exclusively on data recovery, with little regard for providing critical services to customers as you work to recover fully from this crisis.

This is the nightmare that many enterprises have faced when they have become victims of a destructive attack.  

Today’s cyberthreat landscape illustrates the need for enterprises to not just have back-ups of user and business data, but to also have immutable and distributed backups of applications, systems, networks, processes and other critical services to enable swift recovery of operations. It has become clear that just having good back-ups of data is an inadequate business response.   

Without the ability to quickly restore minimal viable service levels with accurate data and restoration of critical applications, networks, devices and systems architecture, organizations are at high risk of extending disruption from attacks. Executive management, shareholders, customers and then journalists will ask legitimate questions regarding how quickly minimal service levels can be restored. How have you prepared for this type of attack? 

Three years ago, Global Resilience Federation’s Business Resilience Council (BRC) launched a multi-sector working group to establish a framework to address all aspects of data, systems, and processes recovery from a destructive attack. The ORF’s multi-sector volunteer team of experts included security and resilience practitioners and consultants from many industry sectors. The working group spent over two years to develop the Operational Resilience Framework (ORF) which was then reviewed by over a hundred organization before version 1.0 was released (www.grf.org/orf). 

The ORF provides rules and implementation aids that support a company’s recovery of data, systems and processes based on establishment of minimum viable services levels and objectives for immutable backup and recovery. The ORF is a vendor agnostic solution and establishes a set of rules that are uniquely not prescriptive with a goal of reaching a goal of operational resilience for the enterprise that is consistent with existing standards.

 A summary of the path towards operational resilience identified by the ORF include:

  1. Implement an industry-recognized standard IT and cybersecurity controls framework.
  2. Understand the organization’s role in the ecosystem. 
  3. Conduct an inventory and allocate business processes, systems, and data sets into three categories- Operations Critical, Business Critical, and Business as Usual.
  4. Define your organization’s impact tolerance for disruptions to each Operations Critical service. 
  5. Preserve the Data Sets necessary to support Operations Critical and Business Critical services.
  6. Develop Operations Resilience processes to enable recovery and restoration of Operations Critical and Business Critical services within acceptable impact tolerances.
  7. Independently evaluate design and test periodically.

The ORF is designed to be broadly applicable, with downloadable documents including:  

  • Rules targeted to practitioners with information on the steps, terminology, implementation aids, and future activities.
  • A mapping of the rules to NIST and ISO controls.
  • A glossary document with defined key terms.
  • A business-oriented implementation scenario to explain use cases in the form of a plausible incident.

In the face of a destructive cyberattack or massive natural disaster, enterprises must plan to mitigate the impact based on pre-established minimal viable service levels and objectives. Don’t be unprepared.

The ORF working group is now working on various ORF implementation tools including a maturity model, training programs and operational resilience exercises for multiple sectors. Visit www.grf.org/orf to download the complimentary documents to enhance your organization’s resilience against destructive events and maintain operational continuity.  

Bill Nelson is Chair at the Global Resilience Federation

You Might Also Read:

Zero Trust: A Paradigm Shift in Cybersecurity:

___________________________________________________________________________________________

If you like this website and use the comprehensive 6,500-plus service supplier Directory, you can get unrestricted access, including the exclusive in-depth Directors Report series, by signing up for a Premium Subscription.

  • Individual £5 per month or £50 per year. Sign Up
  • Multi-User, Corporate & Library Accounts Available on Request

Cyber Security Intelligence: Captured Organised & Accessible


 

« Hollywood Stars Strike Over AI Human Replacements
WEBINAR | Uplevel Your Cloud Security Posture With CSPM »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North IT (North Infosec Testing) are an award-winning provider of web, software, and application penetration testing.

Jooble

Jooble

Jooble is a job search aggregator operating in 71 countries worldwide. We simplify the job search process by displaying active job ads from major job boards and career sites across the internet.

Cyber Security Supplier Directory

Cyber Security Supplier Directory

Our Supplier Directory lists 6,000+ specialist cyber security service providers in 128 countries worldwide. IS YOUR ORGANISATION LISTED?

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO is the market leader in HPE Non-Stop Security, Risk Management and Compliance.

USNA Center for Cyber Security Studies

USNA Center for Cyber Security Studies

The mission of the Center for Cyber Security Studies is to enhance the education of midshipmen in all areas of cyber warfare.

Site24x7

Site24x7

Site24x7 is an all-in-one performance monitoring solution for Networks, Websites, Servers and Applications.

Bastille

Bastille

Bastille’s patented software and security sensors bring visibility to devices emitting radio signals (Wi-Fi, cellular, IoT) in your organization.

techUK

techUK

techUK represents companies operating in the tech sector in the UK. Focus areas cover all aspects of ICT including cyber security.

SCADAfence

SCADAfence

SCADAfence offers cutting edge cybersecurity solutions designed to ensure the operational continuity of industrial (ICS/SCADA) networks.

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is a Virtual Private Network services provider offering secure encrypted access to the internet.

Mitre ATT&CK

Mitre ATT&CK

MITRE ATT&CK™ is a globally-accessible knowledge base of adversary tactics and techniques based on real-world observations.

Haventec

Haventec

Haventec’s internationally patented technologies reduce cyber risk and enable pervasive trust services with a decentralised approach to authentication.

QI ANXIN Technology Group

QI ANXIN Technology Group

QI ANXIN specializes in serving the cybersecurity market by offering next generation enterprise-class cybersecurity products and services to government and businesses.

VIRTIS

VIRTIS

VIRTIS' mission is to provide today's leading organizations peace of mind that their entire digital network perimeter is safe from hackers and data breach.

LogicBoost Labs

LogicBoost Labs

LogicBoost Labs has the expertise, experience, funding and connections to make your startup succeed. We are always interested in new ways to change the world for the better.

Cyber Defense Technologies (CDT)

Cyber Defense Technologies (CDT)

Cyber Defense Technologies provides services and turn-key solutions to secure and maintain the integrity of your organization’s systems and data against attacks.

SideChannel

SideChannel

At SideChannel, we match companies with an expert virtual CISO (vCISO), so your organization can assess cyber risk and ensure cybersecurity compliance.

Prembly

Prembly

Prembly are a compliance and security infrastructure company.

One Step Secure IT

One Step Secure IT

One Step provide Managed IT Services, Cybersecurity Protections, and Compliance to businesses in the USA nationwide.

Cythera

Cythera

Cythera is an Australian cyber security company with in-house cyber security professionals providing world-class cyber protection to medium to large companies all over Australia.