When communicating an incident to the general public, an incident manager must collaborate with specialized teams to ensure the message is both legally sound and effectively managed. The Legal department is critical for reviewing all external communications to ensure compliance with data breach notification laws and to mitigate legal liability. The Public Relations department is responsible for crafting the message, managing media inquiries, and preserving the organization's reputation. This dual-pronged approach ensures that public statements are accurate, compliant, and strategically delivered to maintain public trust.

A. Law enforcement: Law enforcement is an external agency to be notified if a crime has occurred, not an internal entity that approves the organization's public communication process.

B. Governance: Governance provides the high-level framework and policies, but the specific, operational task of crafting and approving public statements falls to legal and PR teams.

D. Manager: This option is too vague. The incident manager is a manager who coordinates with other specific functional leads, such as the heads of legal and public relations.

F. Human resources: Human resources primarily handles internal communications and personnel-related matters, not external communications with the general public regarding a security incident.

1. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). (2012). Special Publication 800-61 Rev. 2

Computer Security Incident Handling Guide.

Section 2.4.3

"Relationships with Other Groups

" states

"The CSIRT should also have a close relationship with the organization’s general counsel and public affairs offices. The general counsel can provide advice on legal issues... Public affairs can handle the media

which is particularly important during a high-profile incident." This directly supports the involvement of Legal (general counsel) and Public Relations (public affairs).

2. University of Washington. (2023). UW-IT Information Security and Privacy: Incident Response Plan.

Section "Incident Response Team

" under the subsection for "External Communications

" explicitly lists "University Marketing & Communications" (the public relations function) and the "Office of the Attorney General" (the legal function) as the primary entities responsible for coordinating and approving communications with the media and the public.

3. Solove

D. J.

& Citron

D. K. (2017). Risk and Anxiety: A Theory of Data-Breach Harms. The George Washington University Law School Public Law and Legal Theory Paper No. 2017-10.

Section IV.B

"The Response to a Data Breach

" discusses the institutional response

emphasizing that "companies often hire public relations firms to help them manage the crisis" and that legal counsel is central to navigating the complex web of state and federal notification laws. This academic source underscores the essential roles of both PR and legal teams. (Available via SSRN and university repositories).