Incident Response Policy Template
Incident response plan for suspected or confirmed cardholder data breaches and security events.
What This Policy Covers
Required Sections
A compliant Incident Response Policy for PCI DSS v4.0 must include the following8 sections. Each section addresses a specific control requirement that auditors will review.
Purpose and Scope
Policy objectives and triggering conditions.
Incident Response Team
Roles, responsibilities, and 24/7 contact requirements.
Incident Classification
Severity levels and cardholder data breach criteria.
Detection and Analysis
Alert triage and investigation procedures.
Containment and Eradication
Immediate response and root cause elimination.
Card Brand and Acquirer Notification
Notification timelines and procedures for Visa/Mastercard.
Post-Incident Review
Lessons learned and policy update process.
Annual Testing
Tabletop exercise and simulation requirements.
Generate a Customized Version
This template shows the required structure. PoliWriter generates a fully customized Incident Response Policy that references your actual cloud providers, identity systems, tools, and team practices — ready for auditor review.
Policy Details
Other PCI DSS v4.0 Templates
Controls for network security including firewall configuration, DMZ setup, and cardholder data environment segmentation.
Policy governing storage, transmission, and protection of cardholder data and sensitive authentication data.
Processes for identifying, prioritizing, and remediating security vulnerabilities across system components.
Restricting access to cardholder data system components on a business need-to-know basis.
Logging, monitoring, and testing of all network resources and cardholder data access.
Overarching information security policy addressing all PCI DSS program requirements and security governance.
Physical access controls for cardholder data environments, media handling, and device security.
Management of third-party service providers with access to or impact on cardholder data and the CDE.