Incident Reporting Policy

1. Purpose

This policy defines the procedures for reporting, managing, and resolving IT and security incidents. Its goal is to minimize the impact on business operations and maintain the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of company systems and data.

2. Scope

This policy applies to all employees and interns who identify or experience incidents affecting company systems, data, or infrastructure.

3. Definition of an Incident

An incident is any event that:

Disrupts normal operations or IT services.
Compromises the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of data.
Involves unauthorized access, malware infection, data loss, or hardware/software failure.
Includes physical security breaches affecting IT systems.

4. Employee Responsibilities

Employees must:

Immediately report any IT or security incident, suspected or confirmed, to the IT team.
Provide accurate and complete information regarding the incident.
Avoid attempting to fix the issue unless instructed by IT.
Cooperate with investigations and provide requested evidence.

5. Reporting Process

Initial Reporting:
- Email: support@heinfricke.services
- Phone/Instant Messaging: As provided by IT
Information to Include:
- Description of the incident
- Date and time of occurrence
- Affected systems or devices
- Any steps already taken
Confirmation:
- IT team will acknowledge receipt and assign a tracking ID.

6. Incident Classification & Prioritization

Incidents will be classified based on severity:

Critical: Major disruption to business operations or data breach.
High: Significant impact on specific users or systems.
Medium: Moderate impact, limited to non-critical systems.
Low: Minimal impact, minor issues or errors.

Priority determines the response time and escalation process.

7. Investigation & Resolution

IT team will investigate incidents, gather evidence, and identify the root cause.
Appropriate remediation steps will be applied to resolve the incident.
Preventive measures will be implemented to avoid recurrence.

8. Communication & Escalation

Critical incidents will be escalated to IT management immediately.
Employees will be informed of the status and resolution timelines as necessary.
Any regulatory or legal obligations regarding incident notification will be followed.

9. Monitoring & Compliance

The IT department will maintain an incident log for monitoring trends and reporting.
Non-compliance with reporting procedures may result in disciplinary action.
Periodic audits will ensure adherence to this policy.

10. Policy Review

This policy will be reviewed annually and updated to reflect changes in technology, regulations, or business requirements.

11. Acknowledgement

All employees must confirm that they have read, understood, and agree to comply with this Incident Reporting Policy by signing the Incident Reporting Acknowledgement Form.