An integrated circuit comprising: multiple peripheral devices; an alert handler comprising: multiple alert receiver modules, each alert receiver module coupled to a peripheral device of the multiple peripheral devices; multiple escalation timers, each respective escalation timer corresponding to a respective escalation severity of multiple escalation severities; multiple escalation sender modules coupled to the multiple escalation timers; and a controller coupled to the multiple alert receiver modules and the multiple escalation timers, the controller configured to: classify a triggered alert received from an alert receiver module of the multiple alert receiver modules into an alert classification of multiple alert classifications based on at least one of the alert receiver module or the triggered alert; initiate an escalation timer of the multiple escalation timers based on the alert classification; and instruct at least one escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules to send at least one escalate command responsive to expiration of the escalation timer; and multiple escalation handlers, each escalation handler coupled to an escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules, each escalation handler configured to implement at least one security countermeasure, and at least one escalation handler of the multiple escalation handlers configured, responsive to receiving the at least one escalate command from the at least one escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules, to implement the at least one security countermeasure. multiple peripheral devices; an alert handler comprising: multiple alert receiver modules, each alert receiver module coupled to a peripheral device of the multiple peripheral devices; multiple escalation timers, each respective escalation timer corresponding to a respective escalation severity of multiple escalation severities; multiple escalation sender modules coupled to the multiple escalation timers; and a controller coupled to the multiple alert receiver modules and the multiple escalation timers, the controller configured to: classify a triggered alert received from an alert receiver module of the multiple alert receiver modules into an alert classification of multiple alert classifications based on at least one of the alert receiver module or the triggered alert; initiate an escalation timer of the multiple escalation timers based on the alert classification; and instruct at least one escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules to send at least one escalate command responsive to expiration of the escalation timer; and multiple alert receiver modules, each alert receiver module coupled to a peripheral device of the multiple peripheral devices; multiple escalation timers, each respective escalation timer corresponding to a respective escalation severity of multiple escalation severities; multiple escalation sender modules coupled to the multiple escalation timers; and a controller coupled to the multiple alert receiver modules and the multiple escalation timers, the controller configured to: classify a triggered alert received from an alert receiver module of the multiple alert receiver modules into an alert classification of multiple alert classifications based on at least one of the alert receiver module or the triggered alert; initiate an escalation timer of the multiple escalation timers based on the alert classification; and instruct at least one escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules to send at least one escalate command responsive to expiration of the escalation timer; and classify a triggered alert received from an alert receiver module of the multiple alert receiver modules into an alert classification of multiple alert classifications based on at least one of the alert receiver module or the triggered alert; initiate an escalation timer of the multiple escalation timers based on the alert classification; and instruct at least one escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules to send at least one escalate command responsive to expiration of the escalation timer; and multiple escalation handlers, each escalation handler coupled to an escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules, each escalation handler configured to implement at least one security countermeasure, and at least one escalation handler of the multiple escalation handlers configured, responsive to receiving the at least one escalate command from the at least one escalation sender module of the multiple escalation sender modules, to implement the at least one security countermeasure.