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Kaitlin brings a wealth of knowledge and a proven track record in managing complex legal challenges to clients in a wide range of industries. Her diverse background spans cybersecurity, data privacy, and complex litigation, including leading cybersecurity incident response teams, advising on compliance issues, and coordinating with international counsel.

This five-part series provides an introductory roadmap to the California Consumer Privacy Act’s (CCPA) new cybersecurity audit requirement and the California Privacy Protection Agency’s (CalPrivacy) implementing regulations.

This article takes the next step and focuses on what businesses can do before an incident to structure their vendor relationships and IR plans in alignment with these key legal lessons. We focus on four core IR vendor types: digital forensics vendors, restoration vendors, public relations (PR)/communications firms, and data mining/data review vendors.

Reprinted with permission from the February 9, 2026 edition of The Legal Intelligencer. © 2026 ALM Global Properties, LLC. All rights reserved. Further duplication without permission is prohibited. For permission to reprint or license this article, please contact 877-256-2472 or asset-and-logo-licensing@alm.com.

Investigations led by counsel, triggered by legal risk, and designed to elicit legal advice remain protected, even if their findings later inform business decisions. For cyber incidents, FirstEnergy outlines how to structure IR investigations to maximize privilege and work product protection while supporting an effective technical and business response.