Cybercrime topped ICM’s 2025 Annual Crisis Report, accounting for 25.44% of more than 1.2 million crisis news items tracked. That is a big signal for leaders: organizations need to prepare for cyber incidents as business and reputation events, not just IT problems.
A cyberattack may start as a technical event, but it does not stay there for long. Employees want to know whether their information is safe. Customers need practical guidance. Business partners want to know whether operations can continue. Leaders and boards need a clear view of risk, responsibility, and next steps.
The strongest organizations are not always the ones that avoid every incident. They are the ones that can bring the right people together quickly, verify facts without unnecessary delay, and communicate in language people understand. A cyber plan that sits only with IT is incomplete. Before an incident occurs, communications, legal, HR, operations, customer service, IT, and senior leaders should know exactly what they own.
What to Do Next:
- Map your first-four-hour team. Name the people who must be notified, confirm who can make decisions, and assign one coordinator.
- Test your customer communication. Draft a plain-language holding statement that answers what happened, what people should do now, and when they will hear more.
- Run a short tabletop exercise. Use a realistic scenario, make the first-hour decisions together, and fix any approval or ownership gaps you find.
