The Forensic Playbook — Your First 72 Hours

When an incident breaks—fraud, cyber compromise, inventory shrinkage, procurement abuse—the first 72 hours decide the outcome. Most organisations lose leverage because they (1) delay preservation, (2) interview too early without evidence, (3) contaminate logs and devices, or (4) chase symptoms instead of the core transaction trail. This article sets out a practical First 72 Hours Forensic Playbook tailored to distribution/retail and manufacturing, aligned with Dawgen’s forensic readiness approach (TRACE™). It explains what to do, who should do it, what evidence to preserve, and how to maintain defensibility from day one.

Why the first 72 hours matter

In the first three days:

Digital logs overwrite quickly (VPN, firewall, EDR, cloud audit logs).
Humans unknowingly destroy evidence (password resets, “tidying” files, patching systems, deleting emails).
Rumours spread and staff start aligning stories.
Money moves (refunds, payments, inventory adjustments) and recovery windows close.

A good playbook prevents panic and ensures each action improves—rather than weakens—your ability to prove what happened.

The Forensic Playbook at a glance

Phase 1: 0–6 hours — Stabilise and preserve

Objective: stop harm, freeze evidence, and avoid contamination.

Trigger the incident response lead

Assign a single incident lead (usually Risk/Compliance, Internal Audit, CFO, or Security—depending on scenario).
Start an incident log: date/time, actions taken, who authorised, what systems touched.

Define the scope (tight, not broad)
Ask only three questions:

What happened (symptoms)?
Where did it happen (systems/processes/sites)?
When did it start (time window)?

Preserve evidence immediately (before “fixing”)

Put a legal hold on relevant mailboxes, shared drives, collaboration tools.
Preserve key logs (export and secure copies): AD/SSO, ERP audit trails, VPN, firewall, EDR, cloud app logs.
Preserve transactional data: vendor master changes, PO/GRN/invoice trails, payment runs, stock adjustments, returns/refunds.

Stop ongoing leakage—safely

Temporarily disable suspicious accounts (do not wipe devices).
Freeze high-risk workflows: vendor bank changes, manual payments, urgent stock write-offs.
If cyber incident: isolate endpoints via EDR; coordinate with IT to avoid destroying artifacts.

Distribution/retail emphasis: payment runs, returns/refunds, vendor bank changes, WMS transactions.
Manufacturing emphasis: scrap/write-offs, production yield exceptions, privileged access to OT/plant systems.

Phase 2: 6–24 hours — Capture and triage

Objective: collect high-value evidence and build the first fact pattern.

Create an “Evidence Pack” (minimum viable evidence)
A practical pack typically includes:

ERP user access changes + audit trail
Vendor master file change log
PO/GRN/invoice linkage and exceptions
Payment batch reports + bank authorisation logs
Inventory adjustment logs + approvals
Email audit logs (rules/forwarding)
VPN logins + device/IP history for key users

Identify the “truth systems”
Agree which sources are authoritative:

Bank portal > emailed “proof of payment”
ERP audit trail > screenshots
EDR timeline > user recollection
Badge logs/shift roster > “I was not there”

Set up chain-of-custody (light but real)

One secure repository (restricted access).
Evidence naming convention (date-system-user-object).
Hashing where feasible; at minimum, controlled access + audit logging.

Build the timeline
Create a single timeline across:

Transactions (PO → GRN → invoice → payment)
Access events (logins, role changes, approvals)
Physical presence (badge logs, CCTV, shift roster)
Communications (emails, approvals, Teams/Slack)

Phase 3: 24–72 hours — Validate, contain, and prepare for action

Objective: confirm root cause, prevent recurrence, and prepare decision-ready outputs.

Conduct evidence-led interviews (not memory-led)

Start with process owners (how should it work?).
Then exception approvers (why was it overridden?).
Then subjects of concern—only after you have transaction and access evidence.
This reduces deception risk and improves admissions.

Quantify exposure and recovery options

Financial exposure: overpayments, leakage, inventory loss, fraudulent refunds.
Control exposure: which control failed (or was bypassed).
Recovery: bank recall windows, insurer notice requirements, vendor offsets, disciplinary routes.

Containment actions (targeted fixes)

Remove risky access (least privilege, stop shared accounts).
Tighten workflow gates: vendor bank changes, write-offs, manual payments.
Implement monitoring flags (exceptions, after-hours activity, rapid master-data edits).

Produce a 2-page “Decision Brief”
Include:

What happened (facts, not theories)
Who/what systems involved
How it happened (control breakdown)
Impact estimate (low/base/high)
Immediate actions taken
Next steps (forensics depth, legal, HR, insurer, regulators)

Composite case study: Distribution/retail — “Returns fraud + refund override”

A retailer saw rising refunds. The initial instinct was to discipline frontline staff. Using the First 72 Hours Playbook, the team preserved POS logs, refund overrides, user-role change history, CCTV timestamps, and shift rosters. The timeline showed refund approvals were executed using a supervisor account during periods when that supervisor was not on premises—pointing to credential misuse, not simple staff error. The organisation recovered funds, tightened access controls, and implemented refund exception monitoring.

Composite case study: Manufacturing — “Scrap inflation masking inventory diversion”

A manufacturer blamed machinery for increased scrap. The playbook required immediate preservation of stock adjustment logs, scrap approvals, badge access to restricted zones, and shift rosters. The timeline demonstrated recurring after-hours entries and scrap approvals aligned with those access events. The business implemented tighter scrap governance and reduced losses materially within a quarter.

What to put in place now (before the next incident)

To make the playbook work under pressure, pre-build:

An Incident Trigger Matrix (what incidents activate the playbook).
An Evidence Map (where proof lives—your prior article).
A Preservation Kit (export steps + access permissions + retention windows).
A War Room roster (Incident Lead, IT, Finance, HR, Legal, Ops, Comms).
A Decision Brief template (two pages, consistent format).

Next Step!

If you want Dawgen Global to tailor a First 72 Hours Forensic Playbook for distribution/retail and manufacturing—including evidence extraction guides, escalation paths, and tabletop testing—contact us:

Contact us: https://www.dawgen.global/contact-us/
Email: [email protected]
Telephone (Caribbean): 876-9293670 | 876-9293870
Telephone (USA): 855-354-2447
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