What does 'root cause analysis' entail?

Root cause analysis is a critical process used to identify the fundamental issues that lead to an incident. This approach goes beyond just addressing the symptoms or immediate factors contributing to a problem; it seeks to uncover the deeper, often systemic or procedural deficiencies that allowed the incident to occur in the first place. By investigating these underlying causes, organizations can implement corrective actions that prevent recurrence, thus improving overall security posture and incident management.

This method is vital in security incident response because it ensures that not only is the current incident resolved, but future incidents are also mitigated by addressing the foundational flaws. Other choices, such as identifying user errors, conducting risk assessments, and documenting incidents, are important components of security management but do not specifically address the investigative depth required to find and address the root cause of incidents.