Post‑Breach To-Do: A Checklist for Protecting Company Documents After a Social Media Account Compromise

Post‑Breach To‑Do: A Checklist for Protecting Company Documents After a Social Media Account Compromise

Hook: If a social media account tied to your business was just hijacked — and attackers may have had access to linked documents, shared folders, or API tokens — stop and run this post‑breach checklist now. Every minute you delay increases the chance of data loss, unauthorized sharing, and regulatory exposure.

The reality in 2026: why this matters now

Early 2026 saw a surge in social media password‑reset and account takeover campaigns affecting major platforms (LinkedIn, Meta properties, and others). Attackers move quickly from account takeover to lateral access: they pivot from a compromised profile to shared drives, cloud document links, OAuth integrations, and third‑party apps. With widespread adoption of single sign‑on (SSO), passkeys, and API integrations, a single compromised account can expose dozens of legal, financial, and HR documents.

That’s why a post‑breach checklist must be both operational and forensic: you must stop further access, preserve evidence for legal/regulatory needs, and communicate internally and externally without making the situation worse.

How to use this checklist

This guide uses a time‑based workflow with concrete tasks and templates you can copy. Treat it as an operational runbook: immediate (0–2 hours), short‑term (2–24 hours), medium (24–72 hours), and longer‑term (72+ hours). Assign roles (CISO/IT lead, legal, communications, HR, operations) before you start. If you have an IR retainer or cyber insurer, notify them as soon as practical.

Immediate actions (0–2 hours) — Stop the bleed

Priority: cut active sessions and revoke direct access to documents and apps linked to the compromised account.

1. Isolate the account
   • Force logouts and revoke sessions from the social platform's security settings.
   • Disable the profile if the platform allows immediate suspension.
   • Remove the account from admin/owner roles in pages, ad accounts, and business managers.
2. Revoke OAuth & API access
   • From the social platform and every linked service (e.g., Zapier, Hootsuite, CRM), remove all connected apps and OAuth tokens for the compromised account.
   • Rotate API keys used by integrations that referenced the compromised account.
3. Lock down document access
   • Remove the compromised account’s permissions from shared drives and folders (Google Drive, OneDrive, Box, Dropbox).
   • Temporarily change sharing links from 'anyone with link' to organization only or disabled.
   • Suspend access to company document management systems (DMS) if the account used SSO.
4. Reset credentials
   • Do not immediately reset the user’s password without confirming you control the user’s recovery email/phone; attackers often change recovery options. Use the platform’s account recovery verification flow.
   • Where possible, require an IT‑issued temporary password and enforce a password reset at next sign‑in.
   • Enforce multi‑factor authentication (MFA) or passkey for all admin and document‑access accounts before restoring access.
5. Snapshot & preserve logs
   • Capture screenshots of the compromised account settings page showing suspicious changes, session activity, and connected apps (include timestamps).
   • Download available platform account data (platform 'download your data' tools) and preserve HTTP headers, if provided.
   • Notify IT/Security to preserve relevant SIEM/EDR logs and cloud provider logs (AWS CloudTrail, GCP Audit Logs, Azure Activity Logs) covering the incident period.

Short‑term actions (2–24 hours) — Evidence & control

Priority: collect durable evidence, lock enterprise controls, and begin communications.

1. Forensic snapshot of devices
   • If the compromised user used a company device, collect EDR snapshots or create forensic disk images prior to rebooting the device.
   • Preserve volatile memory if you suspect malware/shells (coordinate with your IR provider).
2. Collect audit logs
   • Export audit logs from the social platform (if available). Request platform support for extended logs and takedown evidence; many platforms now offer expedited support for suspected breaches.
   • Aggregate login/auth logs from identity provider (Okta, Azure AD, Google Workspace). Look for unusual IPs, geolocations, or anomalies in login time.
   • Pull DMS access logs for all documents viewed/modified/shared by the compromised account over the last 90 days.
3. Revoke and rotate
   • Rotate SSO session tokens and sign‑out users from web apps where the compromised account had admin privileges.
   • Rotate credentials for service accounts and any system that used the compromised account for automation.
4. Start internal communications
   • Notify leadership, legal, compliance, HR, and the designated incident response team.
   • Use the internal template below for clear, simple instructions to employees (do not speculatively attribute scope).

Internal notification template (copy‑paste)

Subject: Security Incident — Immediate Action Required

Team,

We are responding to a social media account compromise that may have impacted linked documents. Do not access or share documents until IT confirms. If you have copies of company documents locally, preserve them and notify IT immediately at it‑security@yourcompany.com. We will provide updates within 2 hours.

— Incident Response Team

Medium term (24–72 hours) — Forensics, scope, and notifications

Priority: determine the scope of exposure, involve legal/cyber insurance, and fulfill regulatory timelines.

1. Complete a scope analysis
   • Map all documents and records the compromised account could access (shared folders, CRM exports, contract repositories).
   • Prioritize sensitive categories: PII, PHI, financial data, contracts, intellectual property.
2. Engage forensics and legal
   • If the breach touches regulated data, engage external digital forensics and legal counsel immediately.
   • Notify your cyber insurer per policy terms. Many insurers require prompt notification to preserve coverage.
3. Breach notifications
   • Assess notification obligations. Under GDPR, notification to authorities may be required within 72 hours. U.S. state laws vary on timing; consult legal counsel.
   • Prepare customer notification drafts (see template below) and escalate only after confirming scope and legal guidance.
4. Preserve chain of custody
   • For every log, file snapshot, and device image, document who collected it, when, and how. Use checksums (SHA‑256) to prove integrity — and consider workflows used to preserve reconstructed content when web/platform exports are partial.

Customer notification template (high level)

Subject: Notice of Security Incident

We are writing to inform you of a security incident involving a social media account linked to our company. We are investigating and have secured the environment. At this time, we believe limited company documents were accessible; we will notify you if your personal data is affected. For questions, contact privacy@yourcompany.com.

Longer term (72+ hours) — Remediation & prevention

Priority: restore normal operations safely, document lessons learned, and harden your environment.

1. Restore accounts carefully
   • Only restore access after passwords are changed, MFA is enforced, and forensics confirms no persistence mechanisms remain.
   • For admin accounts, require physical token (FIDO2) or corporate passkeys; block SMS OTPs for admins.
2. Harden document workflows
   • Move sensitive documents into a managed DMS with audit trails, document watermarking, and conditional access (CASB and DMS integration recommended).
   • Eliminate 'anyone with the link' sharing. Use scoped, time‑limited links for external sharing.
3. Policy and training
   • Update incident response and communications playbooks with this event’s lessons. Run tabletop exercises quarterly.
   • Train employees on phishing and password hygiene; promote passkeys and hardware MFA devices.
4. Technology upgrades
   • Implement least privilege for document access. Use role‑based access control (RBAC) and just‑in‑time elevation for admin tasks.
   • Deploy or tune SIEM/UEBA to detect lateral movement from social account abuse — unusual API calls, mass document downloads, or mass sharing events. Consider observability patterns from modern preprod tooling to improve detection pipelines (observability playbooks).

Evidence preservation: practical tips for document forensics

Preserving documents and metadata correctly makes the difference between an investigable incident and a legal mess.

• Capture original files and metadata. Export native copies (not just PDFs). Preserve creation/modification timestamps and version history.
• Create checksums. Generate SHA‑256 hashes for each file and store them in a secure evidence repository with time stamps.
• Preserve sharing records. Download DMS sharing history and access control lists (ACLs) showing who had what access and when.
• Archive communications. Save copies of any direct messages, posts, or comments made by the attacker as screenshots and platform exports.
• Use secure storage. Store evidence in a WORM (write once read many) or MRM (records management) system to prevent tampering.

Audit logs to collect — quick reference

• Platform account logs (login, password changes, session IDs, OAuth grants)
• Identity provider logs (failed/successful MFA, token issuance, SSO events)
• Cloud storage/DMS access logs (file reads, downloads, share link creation)
• Network logs and firewall logs for suspicious outbound connections
• EDR/SIEM alerts and process execution traces on relevant endpoints

Communication: what to say, and what not to say

Clear, measured communication preserves trust and avoids accidental disclosure of sensitive investigation details.

• Do: Provide concise facts about what happened, what you know about scope, and what steps you’re taking.
• Do: Offer a point of contact and a timeframe for follow‑up.
• Don’t: Publish internal screenshots of logs or investigative details that could reveal your detection capabilities or create a false sense of closure.
• Don’t: Speculate about the attacker’s identity or motives in public statements.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

• Pitfall: Resetting passwords without checking recovery controls. Fix: Verify recovery email/phone and lock those fields with platform support if necessary.
• Pitfall: Restoring admin privileges too quickly. Fix: Require passkeys or physical tokens for admin reinstatement.
• Pitfall: Not preserving chain of custody. Fix: Use a documented evidence log and checksum everything.

Advanced strategies (2026 trends and future proofing)

As attackers adapt, secure document workflows with modern controls:

• Adopt passkeys and FIDO2 for admin & document signers. By 2026 many platforms support passkeys; reduce password reliance.
• Use Zero Trust controls for document access. Evaluate device posture, geolocation, and time of day before allowing downloads.
• Deploy a Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) to enforce DLP on social posts and attachments that touch cloud storage.
• Leverage managed IR retainers. Many firms now offer on‑demand forensics + evidence preservation playbooks for small businesses at predictable rates.