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North Carolina · Nonprofit

Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc

Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc (North Carolina) receives grants from 2 organizations whose IRS filings report $130,080 to it, the largest being INSTITUTE FOR SECURITY AND TECHNOLOGY ($124,080). 0 of them have funded it in more than one year.

Revenue FY2024
$5.7M
Funders on record
2
Grants received
$130k
Net assets
$2.9M
0/2 repeat funders
01What it does

What Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc does

Mission

FIRST aspires to bring together incident response and security teams from every country across the world to ensure a safe internet for all. Effective response is a global task, mirroring the global nature of the internet. Based on a peer to peer network governance model, computer security incident response teams (CSIRTS), product security incident response teams (PSIRTS) and independent security researchers work together to limit the damage of security incidents. This requires a high level of trust; the fuel our members run on. FIRST fosters trust building among member through a variety of activities. Incidents are not confined to one cultural or political corner of the internet, nor do they respect borders or boundaries. FIRST thus promotes inclusiveness, inviting membership from all geographic and cultural regions.

As stated on its FY2024 Form 990.

Programs

  1. FIRST held its 36th annual conference in Fukuoka, Japan with a virtual option in June 2024. More than 1055 security professionals from over 103 nations attended sessions on industry best practices, reviews of incident handling, and tools and training, and heard keynotes from industry recognized experts.

    $2,673,531 spent$1,966,521 earned by the program
    69% of program spending
  2. Besides the annual conference, FIRST and its members organize in-person events around the globe which typically have a regional or topical focus. These events cater to a more specialized or local audience. Community driven, these events help participants to force valuable connections which are invaluable during a security incident. Participants discuss security-related technical topics, tools as well as best practice. Many of the events co-host training courses in the area of incident response. In 2024, there were 8 in-person regional events, some with virtual participation.

    $897,517 spent$295,880 earned by the program
    23% of program spending
  3. FIRST provides several online services supporting members in handling security incidents more efficiently. This includes a website containing verified contact information, best practices, and much more information. Operational information is made available through electronic interfaces to be incorporated directly into members' tools. FIRST has over 746 member teams located in 111 countries. Member teams include large vendors, national certs, telcos, research institutes, and many more. FIRST Hosts International Standards like the common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS).

    $280,754 spent
    7% of program spending

The 3 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $3,851,802.

02The organization over time

The organization over time

Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.

100 = 20172017 Revenue 100 ($2.5M) Expenses 100 ($2.3M) Net assets 100 ($2.0M)2018 Revenue 97 ($2.4M) Expenses 94 ($2.1M) Net assets 114 ($2.3M)2019 Revenue 126 ($3.1M) Expenses 125 ($2.8M) Net assets 128 ($2.5M)2020 Revenue 51 ($1.3M) Expenses 66 ($1.5M) Net assets 116 ($2.3M)2021 Revenue 65 ($1.6M) Expenses 61 ($1.4M) Net assets 126 ($2.5M)2022 Revenue 129 ($3.2M) Expenses 157 ($3.5M) Net assets 109 ($2.2M)2023 Revenue 132 ($3.2M) Expenses 166 ($3.7M) Net assets 85 ($1.7M)2024 Revenue 233 ($5.7M) Expenses 205 ($4.6M) Net assets 143 ($2.9M)
'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24
Revenue (233)Expenses (205)Net assets (143)Peer revenue range

Balance sheet

Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2023 to 2024, from $2.5M to $4.0M (+62%).

$3.1M
$3.5M
$4.1M
$3.8M
$3.2M
$2.7M
$2.5M
$4.0M
'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24
Total assetsTotal liabilities

How it's funded, over time

Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.

2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
ContributionsProgram revenueInvestmentOther

Government-grant reliance: 2017 4%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.

40% of Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc’s revenue is contributions — about as donation-reliant as the typical peer (48% for the typical peer).

This organization
Typical peer · 12,352 orgs

Surplus & reserves

Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 3 of the last 8 reported years ran a deficit.

$214k
’17
$278k
’18
$273k
’19
−$229k
’20
$224k
’21
−$347k
’22
−$489k
’23
$1.1M
’24
5.7
months of
reserve

Leadership and staff

The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.

Chief executive

Chris Gibson

Executive Director

Board chair

Tracy Bills

Chair

As listed on its FY2024 Form 990.

'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24
Listed1013131216121413
Joined·+3+3+2+5+5+2+3
No longer listed·0331904
03Who funds it

Who funds it, year by year

Grant support over time, funder by funder — shade shows the grant size each year.

From the IRS filings of Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

How concentrated its funding is

Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc leans on a few funders — its largest provides 95% of grant income and the top three 100%; half comes from just 1 funder.

the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left

100% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc.

95%
largest funder
100%
top three
~1
effective funders

“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

Where its funders are

Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc draws 100% of its grant income from funders outside North Carolina, across 1 state in all.

CA

Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.

04Its place in the field

Against its field

Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc runs a healthier operating margin than three-quarters of the 11,752 education nonprofits its size.

Operating margin19% · top quartile
Months of reserve5.7mo · above the median
Revenue growth (annualized)13% · above the median

this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 11,752 education nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2024

Organizations like Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc

Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.

In North Carolina

Nationally

05Profile & governance

Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.

Where the money goes

83% of spending goes to programs.

Program 83%Management 17%Fundraising 0%

Governance

10
board members
100%
independent
✓Conflict-of-interest policy✓Whistleblower policy✓Document retention✓Board reviewed the 990✓Audited financials

Public support

99%

Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.

Footprint & structure

Files a return copy in 1 state

NC

Screen this organization

A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.

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Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf

Questions and answers

Who funds Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc?
Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc (North Carolina) receives grants from 2 organizations whose IRS filings report $130,080 to it, the largest being INSTITUTE FOR SECURITY AND TECHNOLOGY ($124,080). 0 of them have funded it in more than one year.
How many funders does Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc have?
IRS filings report 2 organizations giving $130,080 in grants to Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc.
Who is the largest funder of Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc?
INSTITUTE FOR SECURITY AND TECHNOLOGY is the largest funder on record, with $124,080 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
How can an organization like Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams Inc find more funders?
Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in North Carolina. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.

These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2024 (financials across 2017–2024), and the filings of 2 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing