Courses |

Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity incident response

Security incidents aren't just an IT problem — they're an organizational challenge that can threaten your programs, damage donor trust, and disrupt your mission. Whether it's ransomware, a data breach, or a compromised email account, having a tested incident response plan can mean the difference between a manageable situation and a crisis that threatens your organization's survival.

In this course, we'll move beyond hoping nothing bad happens to building real preparedness. You'll learn the "left and right of boom" framework for understanding both prevention and response, develop the five phases of incident response, and understand the practical processes your team can actually use when every minute counts. We'll focus on the critical first hour of response, explore legal and insurance considerations nonprofits often overlook, and practice with tabletop exercises that reveal gaps before they matter.

Along the way, you'll build or strengthen your incident response plan, identify your response team, and create clear action steps that match your organization's capacity. You'll leave with templates, checklists, and the confidence to lead when crisis strikes.

This course will benefit nonprofit executive directors, IT staff, operations managers, and anyone responsible for organizational resilience and risk management.

Learning objectives

Incident response planning

Understand why preparation beats hope and learn to build a comprehensive incident response plan tailored to your nonprofit's needs and capacity.

Activating your response

Learn the essential technical, legal, and communication steps your team needs to take when an incident occurs, ensuring coordinated action when every minute counts.

Tabletop exercises

Learn to test your plan safely through scenario-based exercises that reveal gaps and build team confidence without real-world consequences.

Curriculum outline

• Why incidents are inevitable
• Left and right of "boom" - Understanding the incident timeline
• Building your incident response plan and team roles
• The critical first hour - Technical, legal, and people considerations
• Testing with tabletop exercises
• Your 30-60-90 day action plan

Anticipated time to complete

NTEN courses typically require about 60 minutes of video content to complete, while optional content varies by course.