Playbooks & Runbooks
Playbooks and runbooks are structured workflows that guide or automate security operations, ensuring consistent response to incidents and routine tasks.
Table of Contents
What are playbooks and runbooks?
In cybersecurity, a playbook is a structured plan that describes the steps to respond to a specific incident scenario, such as phishing, ransomware, or insider threat. A runbook is more operational, containing step-by-step technical instructions to perform routine tasks such as log analysis, patch application, or backup verification.
Playbooks define the “what” and “why” of an action, while runbooks focus on the “how”. Together, they ensure SOC teams operate consistently, regardless of who is on shift.
They are essential for reducing human error, accelerating response, and training new analysts.
How they typically work?
- Triggering event: a playbook is initiated when a relevant alert or incident is detected.
- Task allocation: roles and responsibilities are defined within the workflow.
- Guidance or automation: runbooks may be executed manually or automated through SOAR tools.
- Validation: analysts confirm steps were successful.
- Closure: the workflow ends with documentation and reporting.
Common techniques
- Incident playbooks: phishing, ransomware, DDoS, or malware scenarios.
- Runbooks for investigations: gathering logs, isolating systems, resetting accounts.
- Automation-enabled playbooks: integrated with SOAR to trigger actions automatically.
- Training playbooks: used to onboard new analysts by simulating incidents.
- Compliance playbooks: ensuring regulatory reporting steps are followed.
Impact
Playbooks and runbooks standardize operations in SOCs, improving efficiency and reducing risk of inconsistent responses.
They also accelerate training for new analysts, who can follow documented steps without prior deep expertise. For mature organizations, automated playbooks free analysts from repetitive tasks, allowing them to focus on strategic threat hunting and incident analysis.
In compliance-heavy industries, playbooks provide assurance that required steps are always executed, documented, and auditable.
Further reading
- MITRE: Playbook framework. Read more
- Palo Alto Networks: Automated playbooks. Read more
- IBM: Runbooks for incident response. Read more
- SANS Institute: Using playbooks. Read more