Threat Analysis

A. Preparing for a threat analysis is a multi-step process that involves a number of stakeholders within an organization. Here are some of the major steps:

• Identify potential threats: This can include both internal and external threats, such as cyber attacks, natural disasters, or insider threats
• Determine critical assets (such as intellectual property, customer data or financial information)
• Conduct a vulnerability assessment
• Analyze the likelihood of a threat: This includes assessing probability and impact levels
• Develop a threat response plan: Make sure to include roles and responsibilities for a rapid response to any incident
• Educate Employees: Provide training on how to identify and report threats

A. It is important to consider how vulnerable your organization is in given areas and then to create a plan around that. This is where analyzing the likelihood of a threat is so important. While it’s impossible to be fully prepared, having a plan for the most likely brand threats allows a PR agency to create a comprehensive crisis plan stemming from the threat analysis.

A. Clear, open lines of communication are of the utmost importance when it comes to any crisis situation. That starts before the crisis begins: An organization should have a clear understanding of how to communicate a crisis both internally and to the public should it ever arise. This is where an experienced PR firm who has helped organizations navigate crises can save a brand’s reputation and help a company avoid cataclysmic consequences from a crisis.

A. Be prepared. Having a plan and educating employees about what the crisis plan entails can provide some peace of mind knowing that if or when a crisis arises, there is a plan in place for diligently responding to it accordingly. Organizations who have invested in a threat analysis and created a crisis plan should review it on an annual basis and add any new threats that weren’t around in the previous year.