Vendor Disaster Recovery Questionnaire Template

Manual disaster recovery assessments consume 8-12 hours per vendor when starting from scratch. You're translating between different frameworks, chasing down evidence, and rebuilding the same questions for each assessment cycle. A structured vendor disaster recovery questionnaire template eliminates this redundancy while ensuring comprehensive coverage of business continuity risks.

The template serves as your control mapping foundation, translating regulatory requirements into specific, answerable questions vendors understand. Each section produces discrete evidence artifacts you can reference during audits, reducing follow-up cycles and improving response quality. Financial services organizations use these assessments for FFIEC compliance, while healthcare entities satisfy HIPAA contingency planning requirements through systematic vendor evaluation.

Your risk tiering process depends on consistent data collection across vendors. Without standardized questions, you're comparing incomplete datasets and making subjective risk decisions. This template enforces uniformity in your TPRM program while accommodating industry-specific requirements through modular sections.

Core Sections of a Disaster Recovery Questionnaire

Business Continuity Planning

Start with organizational readiness. Your questionnaire must verify the vendor maintains documented business continuity plans (BCP) updated within the last 12 months. Request specific evidence: BCP documentation, testing schedules, and leadership approval signatures.

Critical questions include:

• Frequency of BCP updates and testing cadence
• Defined recovery time objectives (RTO) for critical services
• Recovery point objectives (RPO) for data restoration
• Alternative site locations and activation procedures
• Employee notification systems and communication protocols

Data Backup and Recovery Procedures

Data protection forms the foundation of operational resilience. Structure questions to extract technical specifications rather than general assurances. Request backup schedules, retention periods, encryption standards, and geographic distribution details.

Evidence requirements:

• Backup configuration documentation
• Recent restoration test results
• Data classification matrices showing backup priorities
• Encryption certificates for data at rest and in transit
• Third-party hosting agreements for cloud backups

Incident Response Capabilities

Assess the vendor's ability to detect, respond to, and recover from security incidents. Focus on documented procedures, defined roles, and escalation pathways. Strong incident response reduces your exposure during vendor breaches.

Key assessment areas:

• 24/7 monitoring capabilities and alert thresholds
• Incident classification criteria and response SLAs
• Internal and external communication protocols
• Forensic investigation procedures
• Customer notification timelines per regulatory requirements

Infrastructure Dependencies

Map the vendor's critical dependencies to understand cascading failure risks. Third-party cloud providers, telecommunications services, and power infrastructure create additional risk layers requiring evaluation.

Dependency mapping questions:

• Primary infrastructure providers and SLA terms
• Single points of failure in service delivery
• Redundancy measures for critical systems
• Geographic distribution of data centers
• Network diversity and failover capabilities

Industry-Specific Applications

Financial Services Implementation

FFIEC guidance requires "appropriate due diligence" for critical service providers. Your questionnaire must address Appendix J requirements including:

• Technology service provider contingency plans
• Recovery strategies for interconnected systems
• Testing coordination with financial institution clients
• Regulatory notification procedures during outages
• Concentration risk assessment for shared infrastructure

Banks typically require quarterly BCP testing evidence and annual tabletop exercises involving client participation. Structure questions to capture both testing frequency and client involvement metrics.

Healthcare Compliance Requirements

HIPAA Security Rule §164.308(a)(7) mandates contingency planning for covered entities and business associates. Align questionnaire sections with required implementation specifications:

• Data backup plan procedures (Required)
• Disaster recovery plan documentation (Required)
• Emergency mode operation plan (Required)
• Testing and revision procedures (Addressable)
• Applications and data criticality analysis (Addressable)

Healthcare vendors must demonstrate PHI-specific recovery procedures. Include questions about encrypted backup storage, access controls during emergency operations, and audit logging continuity.

Technology Sector Considerations

SaaS providers face unique recovery challenges with multi-tenant architectures. Focus assessment questions on:

• Customer data isolation during recovery procedures
• API availability during degraded operations
• Version control and code repository backup strategies
• Development environment recovery capabilities
• Customer communication automation during incidents

Regulatory Framework Alignment

SOC 2 Availability Criteria Mapping

Structure questions to produce evidence supporting SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria:

CC A1.1 - Maintaining system availability commitments

• Uptime SLA documentation
• Historical availability metrics
• Planned maintenance windows

CC A1.2 - Recovery capability requirements

• Documented recovery procedures
• Recovery testing results
• Post-incident analysis reports

CC A1.3 - Business continuity management

• BCP governance structure
• Risk assessment documentation
• Recovery prioritization matrices

ISO 27001/22301 Control Mapping

Align questionnaire sections with ISO control objectives:

A.17.1 - Information security continuity planning

• Risk assessment methodologies
• Business impact analysis results
• Recovery strategy documentation

ISO 22301:2019 Clause 8.4 - Business continuity strategies

• Resource requirement analysis
• Recovery time capability documentation
• Protection and mitigation measures

Implementation Best Practices

Question Design Principles

Write questions that produce measurable responses. Replace "Do you have a BCP?" with "Provide your BCP document including version control, last update date, and approval signatures." Quantifiable questions enable automated scoring and risk tiering.

Evidence Collection Optimization

Structure your DDQ to minimize vendor burden while maximizing evidence value:

1. Accept existing audit reports (SOC 2, ISO certifications) as primary evidence
2. Request supplementary documentation only for gaps
3. Define acceptable evidence formats upfront
4. Set clear timelines for evidence submission
5. Provide secure upload mechanisms for sensitive documents

Risk Scoring Methodology

Develop weighted scoring based on vendor criticality:

• Critical vendors: 100% question coverage required
• Important vendors: the majority of coverage with focus on data protection
• Low-risk vendors: a substantial portion of coverage emphasizing basic continuity

Common Implementation Mistakes

Over-Engineering Questions

Asking for excessive technical detail creates vendor fatigue without improving risk visibility. A 200-question disaster recovery assessment often yields worse results than a focused 50-question evaluation. Vendors provide boilerplate responses to complex questions they don't understand.

Ignoring Industry Context

Generic questionnaires miss sector-specific risks. A healthcare vendor's HIPAA BAA supersedes general disaster recovery commitments. Financial services vendors must address FFIEC-specific requirements beyond standard ISO frameworks.

Insufficient Follow-Up Process

Initial questionnaire responses require validation through evidence review. Common gaps include:

• Accepting "Yes" without supporting documentation
• Missing version control on submitted policies
• No verification of testing claims
• Unclear remediation timelines for identified gaps

Static Assessment Cycles

Annual assessments miss significant infrastructure changes. Implement triggered reassessments for:

• Major vendor acquisitions or mergers
• Significant security incidents
• Infrastructure migrations
• Regulatory enforcement actions
• Material changes to service delivery models

Frequently Asked Questions

How many questions should a disaster recovery questionnaire contain?

Target 40-60 questions for comprehensive coverage. Critical vendors warrant full assessment while low-risk suppliers need only 20-30 core questions focusing on data backup and basic continuity.

What evidence should I require for disaster recovery testing claims?

Request dated test reports including scope, participants, scenarios tested, issues identified, and remediation timelines. Screenshots of successful recovery procedures and post-test action items provide verification.

How do I handle vendors who claim proprietary information restrictions?

Offer NDAs and secure evidence rooms for sensitive documentation. Accept redacted versions showing testing dates and general outcomes. Third-party audit reports often provide sufficient validation without exposing proprietary methods.

Should disaster recovery assessments differ for cloud versus on-premise vendors?

Yes. Cloud vendors require questions about multi-tenancy, data residency, and hyperscaler dependencies. On-premise vendors need deeper infrastructure redundancy and physical security assessments.

How do I score vendors who partially meet recovery requirements?

Use graduated scoring: Full compliance (10 points), documented plan without recent testing (7 points), informal procedures (4 points), no documentation (0 points). Weight scores based on vendor criticality tiers.

When should I reassess vendor disaster recovery capabilities?

Annually for critical vendors, biannually for important vendors, and following any significant incidents. Trigger immediate reassessment after vendor acquisitions, data center moves, or regulatory violations.

How do I validate international vendors' disaster recovery claims?

Request region-specific compliance certifications, local audit reports, and evidence of cross-border data recovery capabilities. Consider time zone impacts on recovery procedures and communication protocols.