What Is The Role of IT in a PR Crisis?

When a company’s IT systems are breached, the public relations team is often called into action to prevent the fallout from harming the company’s reputation. But if a PR crisis happens, does IT also have a role to play?

In an article on the ComputerWeekly.com website, consultant Paul Maloney says that if “a senior member of staff is photographed by the local press in a compromising situation, or bad news breaks about a deal in progress, you would expect someone to handle the press calls and to fight back with positive information, but would you put your information security and IT people on alert?”

That’s exactly what companies should do, Maloney says. In fact, during a PR crisis, many people will try to get information on what is happening in the company. For example, someone might hire a hacker to steal sensitive data on the crisis.

He recommends giving IT staff advanced warning on the crisis so they can “prepare responses, alter their logging profile to concentrate on key areas and review specific vulnerabilities in relation to the threat.”

Start by doing risk and vulnerability assessments, review the website to see if it needs changing, and remind employees about the status of e-mail, phone and web traffic monitoring. IT staff can also remind employees that hackers might use social engineering techniques to get them to give up information about the crisis.

To read the full article, click here: http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2009/04/07/235547/security-zone-actions-for-the-it-team-during-a-pr-crisis.htm