Designing for Incident Response Management
This project involved designing a user-friendly, regulation-compliant Incident Response Management (IRM) platform to assist cybersecurity teams in efficiently detecting, responding to, and recovering from cyber threats.
As the product designer, I collaborated closely with security professionals and stakeholders, aiming to streamline processes, enhance usability, and meet stringent regulatory standards like the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA)
Semperis
12-14 months
Product designer
Problem statement
Our research uncovered several critical issues impacting incident response teams: manual and fragmented workflows, unclear dashboards, ineffective real-time communication, and difficulty maintaining compliance records.
Users needed a centralized, intuitive platform to facilitate quicker, clearer decisions and streamlined collaboration. Compliance with DORA and other cybersecurity regulations requires:
1. Faster detection & response times to cyber incidents.
2. Automated workflows to reduce human errors.
3. Clear communication & collaboration between security teams, IT, and leadership.
4. Regulatory reporting capabilities to meet compliance requirements.
Challenge
How can we design an intuitive and automated IRM system that enhances cyber resilience and ensures organizations comply with evolving regulatory standards?
Results
The redesigned app offers:
Centralized and organized incident management documentation
Workflows and one stop solution for 40% reduction in response time
Reports compliant with regulations and cyber insurance requirements
40%
Reduced Incident response time
30%
Increase in user satisfaction
Process
Research & Discovery: I conducted interviews with cybersecurity professionals, including security analysts, Chief Information security officer, Incident commanders and security leads officers.
Competitive analysis: Based on the research findings, we restructured the app's navigation and content, prioritizing features and information according to user needs.
Collaboration – Lack of real-time communication tools hindered response coordination.
Regulatory compliance – Existing solutions didn’t offer built-in compliance or reporting feature
User experience – Cluttered dashboards made it difficult to prioritize threats.
User Persona:
Security Analyst: Needs a real-time dashboard to monitor threats and execute response playbooks.
Incident Commander: Requires a centralized incident view and tools for team coordination.
Security team lead: Needs audit logs and regulatory reporting for compliance.
Wireframe and prototyping
Incident summary – Provides a visual timeline of attack progression.
Role-Based Access Control – Limits data access to authorized users.
Communication and collaboration – Enables live chat and task assignment for faster response.
Compliant Reporting – Generates compliance reports
Usability Testing: We conducted usability tests with a diverse set of internal users including security team leads and incident responders to validate the design and identify areas for improvement. Based on the feedback, we made necessary adjustments to the design.
Visual Design: I designed a cohesive visual language for the product using the company design system.
Next steps
AI driven insights and task creation
Automation - Reducing manual intervention speeds up response time.
Customizable dashboards based on role in the incident
AI summary and note taking for cyber insurance
Conclusion
Designing an Incident Response Management System that meets cyber resilience and compliance needs was both challenging and rewarding. The final product not only improved security teams' efficiency but also ensured organizations could confidently navigate government regulations and growing cyber threats.