Incident Priority (SEV Levels)

Q: What is the difference between P0 and SEV0?

P0 and SEV0 are the same concept: critical priority. Different companies use different notation (P for Priority, SEV for Severity). Both mean "drop everything".

Q: How do I choose between P1 and P2?

P1 affects core functionality or revenue (checkout, login). P2 affects non-critical features (reporting, profile edits). When in doubt, err on the side of higher priority.

Q: Can incident priority change during response?

Yes, priority can be upgraded or downgraded as more information becomes available. Document the reason for priority changes in the incident timeline.

A classification system (P0-P4 or SEV1-SEV5) that determines the urgency and response time required for an incident.

Priority

A classification system (P0-P4 or SEV1-SEV5) that determines the urgency and response time required for an incident.

## P0 vs. P3 * **P0 (Critical)**: The house is on fire. All hands on deck. (e.g., Site down). * **P1 (High)**: Major functionality broken. Fix ASAP. (e.g., Checkout failing). * **P2 (Medium)**: Minor functionality broken. Fix during business hours. (e.g., Typo on homepage). * **P3 (Low)**: Annoyance. Fix eventually. (e.g., Button color wrong).

ExFinTech Platform Priority Classification

"Payment processing fails. P0 because revenue impact >$50K/min. Automated classification based on "revenue impact per minute" rule. Page sent to VP Engineering and 5 senior engineers."

Impact

Payment processing restored in 18 minutes, $900K saved

Resolution

Built automatic failover to backup payment provider

Why Priority Matters

Sets expectations for response time (SLAs).

Prevents burnout by ensuring you only wake people up for real emergencies.

Common Pitfalls

Classifying everything as P0 "just in case"

P0 should be rare (<5% of incidents). Over-classification causes alert fatigue and leads to ignored pages.

No clear criteria for priority levels

Create a severity matrix with specific examples. Train all team members on classification criteria.

Related Terms

Incident Triage SLA SLO

Generate Your Severity Matrix

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between P0 and SEV0?

P0 and SEV0 are the same concept: critical priority. Different companies use different notation (P for Priority, SEV for Severity). Both mean "drop everything".

How do I choose between P1 and P2?

P1 affects core functionality or revenue (checkout, login). P2 affects non-critical features (reporting, profile edits). When in doubt, err on the side of higher priority.

Can incident priority change during response?