Cybersecurity Incident Communication Plan Checklist
Use this form to document the communication plan for a cybersecurity incident, including impact, audiences, channels, approvals, and follow-up actions.
Incident Overview
Incident Name or ID
*
Date/Time Discovered
*
 -
Month
 -
Day
Year
2 digit month, 2 digit day, 4 digit year
Date
Hour Minutes
AM
PM
AM/PM Option
Reporter Name
*
Reporter Role or Department
*
Incident Type / Classification
*
Please Select
Phishing
Malware
Ransomware
Unauthorized Access
Data Exposure
Denial of Service
Other
Current Incident Status
*
Please Select
Suspected
Confirmed
Contained
Resolved
Monitoring
Impact and Severity
Severity Level
*
Low
Medium
High
Critical
Affected Business Units or Teams
*
IT
Security
Operations
Customer Support
Finance
Legal
Sales
Human Resources
Other
Affected Systems or Services
*
Customer Data Affected?
*
Yes
No
Unknown
Internal Data Affected?
*
Yes
No
Unknown
Brief Business Impact Description
*
Communication Audience and Notification Plan
Internal audiences to notify
*
IT
Security
Legal
Executive Leadership
HR
Customer Support
PR/Communications
Other
External audiences to notify
*
Customers
Partners
Vendors
Regulators
Law Enforcement
None
Other
Notification urgency
*
Immediate
Within 1 hour
Within 4 hours
Within 24 hours
As needed
Approval required before sending updates
*
Yes
No
Designated approver name or role
Message Content and Channels
Preferred communication channels
*
Email
Phone
SMS
Ticketing system
Internal chat
Status page
Other
Initial message summary
*
Key facts confirmed so far
*
Key facts to withhold for now
*
Spokesperson or message owner
*
Planned update frequency
*
Please Select
Hourly
Every 4 hours
Daily
Ad hoc
Follow-up and Completion Checklist
Follow-up Tasks Checklist
Monitor for new evidence
Send next update
Confirm containment
Coordinate with legal
Update executives
Notify customers
Archive communication log
Other
Target Follow-up Date and Time
 -
Month
 -
Day
Year
2 digit month, 2 digit day, 4 digit year
Date
Hour Minutes
AM
PM
AM/PM Option
Open Issues or Blockers
Completion Confirmation
*
Reviewed and ready for use
Submit Checklist
Should be Empty: