Recovery Planning & Testing Flashcards

Which recovery plan element defines the specific people authorized to declare a disaster and activate the BC plan?

Answer: Invocation authority

Invocation authority identifies who has the power to formally declare an incident and trigger activation of the BC plan, preventing unauthorized or premature activation.

During a tabletop exercise, a facilitator asks: 'Your primary data center is flooded—what do you do first?' What skill is primarily being tested?

Answer: Decision-making and plan knowledge under simulated pressure

Tabletop exercises test participants' understanding of plans and their decision-making ability through discussion, not physical systems activation.

What is the key difference between a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and a Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP)?

Answer: BCPs address overall business continuity while DRPs focus specifically on restoring IT infrastructure

A BCP covers all critical business functions and processes, whereas a DRP is specifically focused on recovering IT systems and data.

A recovery plan includes a 'Minimum Business Continuity Objective' (MBCO). What does this define?

Answer: The minimum level of services/products needed to satisfy stakeholder requirements during disruption

MBCO specifies the minimum output level an organization must achieve during recovery to meet its obligations to customers and stakeholders.

When validating a recovery plan, which approach involves independent reviewers assessing the plan without the planning team present?

Answer: Independent audit

An independent audit provides an objective, unbiased assessment of plan completeness and quality by reviewers with no stake in the plan's content.

What is the primary risk of relying solely on a reciprocal agreement as a recovery site strategy?

Answer: Both organizations may be simultaneously affected by a regional disaster

Reciprocal agreements between nearby organizations carry the risk that a single regional event (flood, power outage) could disable both parties simultaneously.

In recovery plan testing, what is a 'dry run'?

Answer: A rehearsal where teams perform actual recovery procedures without a live incident

A dry run is a rehearsal where recovery procedures are actually performed in sequence without a real disaster occurring, validating process steps and timing.