Definition
Business continuity is the capability of an organization to continue delivering its products and services at acceptable predefined levels following a disruptive incident. It involves establishing processes and plans to ensure essential functions can resume quickly and effectively after a disaster or outage. This proactive approach minimizes operational downtime and financial losses, safeguarding the organization's reputation and stakeholder trust. For instance, a retail company might implement a business continuity plan that includes redundant data centers and a remote work policy to ensure online sales can continue uninterrupted during a localized power failure. While often confused with disaster recovery, which focuses solely on restoring IT systems, business continuity encompasses the entire organization's operational resilience. This concept is frequently tested on certifications like Security+, CySA+, and CISSP.