After releasing the risk management module we have received a number of queries wanting clarification between incidents, problems, and risks. So here is a high level overview of those differences.

The short answer to the question is as follows

• an incident is something that has happened,
• a problem is the cause of something that has or could happen,
• and a risk is something that could happen

The following provides a more detailed explanation of each item

Incident

An incident is an event outside normal operating service that has caused or may cause a disruption to service for the end users. An incident may give rise to the identification of a problem, whose root cause needs to be identified. However, in the ITIL framework the incident should be resolved, or a work around implemented, quickly to allow end users to be able to use the service.

Problem

A problem is the cause of one or more incidents. The cause is usually not known at the time the problem record is created, and the problem management process is responsible for further investigation.

Risk

A risk is a possible event (rather than problem) that could cause harm or loss, or affect the ability to achieve objectives. The risk score is calculated by multiplying the probability the risk will happen (a score between 1 and 5) and the impact that risk would have on the business if it occurred (again a score of 1 to 5)

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Michael IT Governance, ITDashboard, ITIL incident management, ITIL, problem management, risk management