Information System Contingency Plan (ISCP) - NIST SP 800-34 Rev.1 High Impact System

Sep 1, 2026

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A customizable template for an Information System Contingency Plan (ISCP) for a high-impact information system, aligned to NIST SP 800-53 contingency planning controls. It defines how the plan supports recovery after a service disruption by outlining background, scope, assumptions, and operational concepts. It provides structured guidance for activation and notification, outage assessment, recovery procedures, reconstitution, testing validation, and deactivation. It also includes plan approval language and table-of-contents structure to support testing, maintenance, and version control.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPresentations

FormatDOCX

Pages16

Reading Time6 min

AccessFree to download

1. Introduction

1.1 Background

1.2 Scope

1.3 Assumptions

2. Concept of Operations

2.1 System Description

2.2 Overview of Three Phases

2.3 Roles and Responsibilities

3. Activation and Notification

3.1 Activation Criteria and Procedure

3.2 Notification

3.3 Outage Assessment

4. Recovery

4.1 Sequence of Recovery Activities

4.2 Recovery Procedures

4.3 Recovery Escalation Notices/Awareness

5. Reconstitution

5.1 Concurrent Processing

5.2 Validation Data Testing

5.3 Validation Functionality Testing

5.4 Recovery Declaration

5.5 Notification (users)

5.6 Cleanup

5.7 Offsite Data Storage

5.8 Data Backup

5.9 Event Documentation

5.10 Deactivation

NOTE: This sample template is provided to address NIST SP 800-53 security controls from the Contingency Planning family for a high impact information system. The template provided is a guide and may be customized and adapted as necessary to best fit the system or organizational requirements for contingency planning. [System Name] Security Categorization: High [Organization Name] Information System Contingency Plan (ISCP) Version [#] [Date] Prepared by [Organization Name] [Street Address] [City, State, and Zip Code] TABLE OF CONTENTS Plan Approval…………………………………………………….………..….……….……A.3-3 1. Introduction ………………………………………………….……..……….…….……..A.3-4 1.1 Background………..………………………………………….………………..A.3-4 1.2 Scope……..………..…………………………..…….……….……….………..A.3-4 1.3 Assumptions..…….………………………..….……………….……….……...A.3-4 2. Concept of Operations ………………………….……..…………………………..……A.3-5 2.1 System Description………………....……………………………………..…..A.3-5 2.2 Overview of Three Phases..………………………………………………….A.3-5 2.3 Roles and Responsibilities…….…......……………………………………....A.3-6 3. Activation and Notification………………....………………………..………….……..A.3-6 3.1 Activation Criteria and Procedure ...………………………..………………..A.3-6 3.2 Notification…………………...………………………………..………………..A.3-6 3.3 Outage Assessment…………....…......……………………..………………..A.3-7 4. Recovery……………………….……………....…………………………………………..A.3-7 4.1 Sequence of Recovery Activities ....……………………………..…………..A.3-7 4.2 Recovery Procedures ……...………………………………………..………..A.3-8 4.3 Recovery Escalation Notices/Awareness..…......……………………..……..A.3-8 5. Reconstitution..……………….……………....………………….………………..………A.3-8 5.1 Concurrent Processing …………....………………….…………………..…...A.3-8 5.2 Validation Data Testing….....………………………….………………….…...A.3-8 5.3 Validation Functionality Testing.…......……………….………………….…...A.3-9 5.4 Recovery Declaration…………........………………….………………….…...A.3-9 5.5 Notification (users)…. ……...………………………….………………….……A.3-9 5.6 Cleanup ...……………………...…......……………….………………….…….A.3-9 5.7 Offsite Data Storage……………. ....………………….………………….…...A.3-9 5.8 Data Backup………………...………………………….…………………..…...A.3-9 5.9 Event Documentation…………..…......……………….………………….…...A.3-10 5.10 Deactivation……………………..…......……………….………………….…...A.3-10 APPENDICES Plan Approval Provide a statement in accordance with the agency’s contingency planning policy to affirm that the ISCP is complete and has been tested sufficiently. The statement should also affirm that the designated authority is responsible for continued maintenance and testing of the ISCP. This statement should be approved and signed by the system designated authority. Space should be provided for the designated authority to sign, along with any other applicable approving signatures. A sample language is provided below: As the designated authority for {system name}, I hereby certify that the information system contingency plan (ISCP) is complete, and that the information contained in this ISCP provides an accurate representation of the application, its hardware, software, and telecommunication components. I further certify that this document identifies the criticality of the system as it relates to the mission of the {organization name}, and that the recovery strategies identified will provide the ability to recover the system functionality in the most expedient and cost-beneficial method in keeping with its level of criticality. I further attest that this ISCP for {system name} will be tested at least annually. This plan was last tested on {insert exercise date}; the test, training, and exercise (TT&E) material associated with this test can be found {TT&E results appendix or location}. This document will be modified as changes occur and will remain under version control, in accordance with {organization name}’s contingency planning policy. ________________________________________ ________________________ {System Owner Name} Date {System Owner Title} 1. Introduction Information systems are vital to

FAQs

What is the purpose of the ISCP in a high-impact system?

The ISCP establishes comprehensive procedures to recover a system quickly and effectively after a service disruption, while supporting continued operations with minimal excessive interruption.

What phases does the recovery approach include?

The template organizes recovery into three phases: Activation and Notification, Recovery, and Reconstitution, each with defined objectives and activities.

How does the template address plan testing and approval?

It includes plan approval language to confirm completeness and sufficient testing, and it requires that the ISCP is tested at least annually, with testing details referenced in a TT&E results appendix or location.

Sep 1, 2026

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