6 reasons to integrate AI and automation in out-of-band communications

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Remember watching the news when Queensland got hammered by those massive storms? Emergency teams were literally texting on personal phones, trying to coordinate rescues because their main systems went dark. Complete chaos.

And don't get us started on that Post Office scandal in the UK. Sub-postmasters were wrongfully prosecuted because a glitchy IT system went haywire, and nobody had a reliable backup channel to flag the problems.

These stories keep security professionals up at night. Not because they're rare, but because they happen everywhere, all the time.

In crisis management, here's the hard truth: your primary communication systems will fail at the absolute worst moment possible.

That's where out of band communication, along with AI and automation are completely reshaping what's possible during incident repsonse.

AI's impact on out of band communication

Despite their value, traditional out of band communication systems are basically just backup phones gathering dust until disaster strikes. They're reactive, manual, and honestly, often forgotten until you desperately need them.

As a result, most crisis response teams have been in those war rooms where everyone frantically tries to remember how to activate these dormant systems while the clock ticks.

There are definitely more modern options out there that don’t feel so last-century. Things like encrypted messaging apps or automated failover systems are proactive and always-on, cutting down on the manual hassle and the risk of human oversight.

These modern out of band communication tools are built to be seamless, so you’re not scrambling in a panic when disaster strikes.

Plus, AI changes the game entirely.

For example, if a healthcare network implements an AI-driven OOB communication solution, here’s what they can expect:

Instead of waiting for their primary network to completely flatline, their system will constantly monitor for weird blips, performance drops, and potential issues.
Healthcare providers can proactively flag problems before they cascade, automatically rerouting critical communications.
One may also kick off response protocols without someone having to hit the panic button.

AI-powered out of band communication: 6 practical benefits

Let’s go over the top benefits of AI-driven out of band communication you must know if you’re yet to make a decision:

1. Better decisions when every second counts

When critical systems tank, nobody has time to dig through monitoring dashboards or wait for the analytics team to crunch numbers. You need answers now.

Suppose, one financial service gets hammered by a nasty DDoS attack. Their old approach would've meant hours of downtime and frantic calls. However, if they adopt an AI-powered out of band communication system, they can:

Catch the attack signature within seconds
Text the security team through separate channels
Start running the containment playbook automatically
Keep everyone in the loop with real-time updates

2. Saving serious money through less downtime

During incidents like the 2017 NotPetya ransomware attacks, companies such as Mondelez and Maersk suffered severe losses partly due to disrupted internal communication.

The primary goal of out of band communication is to resolve downtime, which can be costly for businesses, averaging $5,600 to $9,000 per minute across industries, according to recent studies.

After implementing an AI-powered out of band communication system, enterprises can:

Catch potential failures before production lines stopped
kick in backup channels automatically when primary networks show instability
Drop recovery time whenever issues occur

What’s more, Marsh notes that out of band communication can reduce cybersecurity insurance premiums, as insurers reward proactive risk management. It also helps maintain compliance with regulations like GDPR and CCPA, avoiding fines that can reach tens of millions.

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3. Security that actually works when you're under attack

Here's what keeps security teams up at night: What if our primary network is already compromised during an attack? How do we communicate securely about the breach if the attacker might be listening?

The Sophos report showed 59% of organizations got hit with ransomware in 2023. Average recovery cost? It jumped to a staggering $2.73 million.

The companies that recovered fastest had AI-enhanced out of band communication with:

Continuous monitoring for fishy communication patterns
Auto-detection of potential data being smuggled out
Secure channels for the incident response team
Methods to verify if communications were actually coming from the real team members

Expert teams often call this "security team's panic room"—completely isolated from the primary network but fully functional when everything else is on fire.

4. Fixing problems before they blow up

The best crisis is the one that never happens. That's where the predictive capabilities of AI-powered out of band communication tools shine. They can:

Spot hardware starting to degrade before it fails outright
Flag capacity issues when there's still time to address them
Automatically test backup systems weekly to ensure they'll actually work when needed
Schedule maintenance during optimal windows to minimize impact

5. Networks that run better even when nothing's wrong

Even when systems aren't failing outright, most networks run nowhere near optimal efficiency. There's constant congestion, routing inefficiencies, and performance bottlenecks that IT teams simply don't have time to continuously address.

AI-driven optimization changes that equation. With this approach, enterprises can:

Automatically balance traffic across available paths
Identify and resolve bottlenecks without human intervention
Constantly tweak routing based on real-time performance
Give the IT team granular visibility into what's actually happening

6. Keeping customers happy even when systems aren't

Let's face it—the lasting damage from outages isn't usually the technical issues. It's the frustrated customers who couldn't reach you when they needed help.

Too many post-mortem meetings end with the tech team celebrating a quick fix while the customer service team drowns in complaints.

The most effective AI-powered out of band communication helps maintain service levels even during disruptions by:

Automatically notifying customers about issues through alternative channels
Providing real-time status updates as resolution progresses
Enabling support teams to maintain communication continuity
Prioritizing high-value customer interactions when capacity is limited

For example, an ecommerce platform may find customer satisfaction scores during outages improve after implementing these capabilities. Their customers didn't mind the brief technical issues—they just wanted to know what was happening and when it would be fixed.

Why Rocket.Chat stands out for AI-driven out of band communication

Implementing an effective AI-powered out of band communication strategy means picking the right secure communication platform. Rocket.Chat stands out for teams serious about business resilience.

As an open source tool, it delivers several key advantages for out of band communication and strengthens incident response:

Robust AI capabilities: From predictive incident detection to automated alerting and intelligent routing, Rocket.Chat's latest AI framework handles modern OOB requirements without breaking a sweat.
Secure, independent channels: The platform creates truly isolated communication pathways that keep working even when your main network is down, giving your team genuine resilience.
Customizable open-source framework: Unlike rigid proprietary solutions, the flexible architecture lets you tailor your out of band communication implementation to your specific needs while integrating with existing systems.
Regulatory compliance: With GDPR and HIPAA compliance built-in, even your emergency communications maintain proper data protection and privacy—one less thing to worry about during a crisis.
Microservices architecture: This approach lets you start small and scale your OOB capabilities as needed without ripping and replacing what's already working.
Seamless integration: Rocket.Chat connects smoothly with your existing IT infrastructure and 50+ apps, making implementation straightforward and reducing adoption headaches.

With Rocket.Chat, during IT emergency response scenarios, teams can securely share updates, logs, and files—maintaining operational continuity even when primary systems are compromised.

Final note

As digital infrastructure gets increasingly tangled and complex, smart, automated out of band communication is becoming essential. Organizations implementing these capabilities now gain major advantages in business resilience, cost efficiency, and overall risk management.

The question isn't whether your organization needs enhanced OOB communication—it's how quickly you can implement these critical capabilities before they're tested in a real-world crisis.

Ready to strengthen your communication resilience with AI-powered out of band solutions?

Contact our team to discuss how Rocket.Chat can transform your organization's approach.