Prepare
Define contacts, critical processes and fallback operations before an outage.
United States · free resources
Prepare your business for disruption.
Prepare contacts, fallback procedures and team exercises with resources for U.S. businesses. If an outage is happening now, open the IT Emergency Navigator.
IT outage or suspected attack? Start the navigator →What do you need to do?
The free materials can be used without purchasing training. Choose according to your situation, rather than the name of a tool.
Handle an IT outage
During an outage, organise the situation, contacts and initial organisational steps. This is not a technical diagnosis.
Coordinate an incident
When a security incident is suspected, document roles, initial reports, decisions and handover. Involve your responsible IT team.
01Free
Continuity handbook
Use these concise starter templates as building blocks for your organization’s continuity handbook.
- Agree emergency contacts and fallback communication
- Describe critical activities and approved fallback operations
- Record responsibilities, actions and review dates
Worked example
A fictional office supplier shows how contacts, a fallback process and actions fit together.
All files as ZIP ↓No signup
02Free
Review your readiness
Discuss these five questions with the people responsible. Record gaps and actions in the worksheets.
- Can the incident lead and backup be reached without company email?
- Are IT, forensics, insurer and legal contacts verified, including service hours and time zones?
- Which processes become time-critical, and which fallback procedures are approved?
- Who reviews U.S. state, industry and contractual notification duties?
- Have you tested offline access to the plan and recorded recovery approval criteria?
Use the worked example to rehearse. A discussion does not establish operational readiness or compliance.
Record gaps in the worksheetsAssign an owner, target date and evidence for each action.03Free
Free tools
Prepare for cyber incidents, organize first steps and assess warning signs.
Tabletop generatorPrepare a facilitated cyber exercise.Incident response checklistRecord first steps, roles and priorities.Ransomware first aidAssess warning signs and prepare a handover to IT.
Tools on CyberDecisionLab · also by Paragamix. First aid is not a malware scan.
04Optional · paid training
Awareness training
The blackout mission “Everything comes to a standstill” explores outage decisions from two perspectives.
Business employeesRecognize outages, report them and follow approved fallback procedures.View training & pricingIT and continuity teamsAssess the situation, coordinate escalation and support recovery.View training & pricing
Training complements preparation with your own continuity handbook.
U.S. scope and international operations
These pages and downloads focus on U.S. businesses. Review notification duties with legal counsel based on affected data, states, industry and contracts. There is no universal 72-hour deadline. The navigator includes official contacts and links for further review.
For operations in multiple countries, assess each relevant jurisdiction. The NIS2 Management Check for EU requirements remains available as a separate learning resource. It is not a general U.S. compliance check.
Sources & usage notes
Paragamix GmbH · Updated: September 14, 2026 · Documents: U.S. edition 2.0
Free to use internally, adapt and share with clients. Adapt and review the templates for your business. They are a starting point for your handbook.
Keep completed documents secure; do not enter passwords. These templates do not replace a reviewed plan tailored to your organization.
Corrections and expert feedback: info@paragamix.com