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Isaca CISA Practice Test 1

Question 1

An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A security team isolates a suspicious server without informing its critical care business owner, interrupting clinical operations. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?

  1. Recommend post-incident root-cause actions with accountable verification deadlines.
  2. Recommend scoped privileged access and auditable controls on VM export and snapshots.
  3. Recommend a risk-based coordinated containment protocol with defined emergency powers.
  4. Recommend coverage and ingestion-gap alarms alongside threat detections.

Explanation

Correct Answer

C:

Recommend a risk-based coordinated containment protocol with defined emergency powers. The relevant control principle is: Containment decisions must consider urgency, safety, business impact and authorized coordination. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Exercises demonstrate timely threat isolation while maintaining essential care pathways.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Recommend post-incident root-cause actions with accountable verification deadlines. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: After a malware outbreak is closed, identical infections recur because no root-cause or control improvement work is assigned. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend a risk-based coordinated containment protocol with defined emergency powers. The governing distinction is: Containment decisions must consider urgency, safety, business impact and authorized coordination.

B:

Recommend scoped privileged access and auditable controls on VM export and snapshots. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A virtualization administrator can snapshot and download regulated production virtual machines without oversight. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend a risk-based coordinated containment protocol with defined emergency powers. The governing distinction is: Containment decisions must consider urgency, safety, business impact and authorized coordination.

D:

Recommend coverage and ingestion-gap alarms alongside threat detections. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An endpoint dashboard displays every system as healthy even though remote devices have stopped forwarding telemetry. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend a risk-based coordinated containment protocol with defined emergency powers. The governing distinction is: Containment decisions must consider urgency, safety, business impact and authorized coordination.

Question 2

An IS auditor evaluates this situation: An application uses TLS for client sessions but disables certificate validation when connecting to its payment processor. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?

  1. Encryption at rest does not control authorized-account misuse or data access in processing.
  2. Break-glass access must be controlled, logged, tested and periodically reauthorized.
  3. Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation.
  4. Overbroad classification can undermine effective enforcement and incident response.

Explanation

Correct Answer

C:

Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation. The corresponding audit procedure is: Review TLS settings, trust validation, connection endpoints and exception records.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Encryption at rest does not control authorized-account misuse or data access in processing. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A database encrypts storage disks but application administrators can export plaintext sensitive records without monitoring. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation. The governing distinction is: Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation.

B:

Break-glass access must be controlled, logged, tested and periodically reauthorized. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Emergency administrator accounts are exempt from monitoring and are never tested until an outage. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation. The governing distinction is: Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation.

D:

Overbroad classification can undermine effective enforcement and incident response. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A research team labels every file confidential, generating excessive DLP false positives and routine overrides. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation. The governing distinction is: Encryption without authenticating the peer can permit interception or impersonation.

Question 3

An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A vendor's audit log is editable by the same administrator whose changes are under investigation. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?

  1. Obtain a reproducible system-generated extract and corroborate key entries independently.
  2. Correct the query's grain and validate exceptions against original records.
  3. Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items.
  4. Corroborate privileged actions using independently controlled log sources and custody records.

Explanation

Correct Answer

D:

Corroborate privileged actions using independently controlled log sources and custody records. The relevant control principle is: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Relevant events match across trusted sources and retention controls prevent undetected alteration.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Obtain a reproducible system-generated extract and corroborate key entries independently. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A system owner provides a screenshot of an access list without a timestamp or source-system identification. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Corroborate privileged actions using independently controlled log sources and custody records. The governing distinction is: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.

B:

Correct the query's grain and validate exceptions against original records. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An audit query joins employee and privilege tables but mistakenly duplicates rows for users with multiple roles. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Corroborate privileged actions using independently controlled log sources and custody records. The governing distinction is: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.

C:

Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A database access audit receives a file containing only current active users although it must assess leavers over the last quarter. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Corroborate privileged actions using independently controlled log sources and custody records. The governing distinction is: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.

Question 4

An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: Security staff begin forensic analysis directly on a live original log file and overwrite timestamps. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?

  1. Recommend promptly preserving appropriately scoped logs and cloud snapshots with custody records.
  2. Recommend compliant device controls and prompt token invalidation or managed wipe.
  3. Recommend restricted protected signing operations and independent key management oversight.
  4. Recommend protected original preservation and analysis on validated working copies.

Explanation

Correct Answer

D:

Recommend protected original preservation and analysis on validated working copies. The relevant control principle is: Preserving original evidence is essential for reliable investigation and potential legal use. A meaningful follow-up should establish: The untouched original and analyzed copy have recorded provenance and integrity checks.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Recommend promptly preserving appropriately scoped logs and cloud snapshots with custody records. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A cloud incident investigator exports only the latest activity logs, omitting records from the suspected initial compromise. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend protected original preservation and analysis on validated working copies. The governing distinction is: Preserving original evidence is essential for reliable investigation and potential legal use.

B:

Recommend compliant device controls and prompt token invalidation or managed wipe. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A lost employee phone still accesses confidential mail because device compliance and remote wipe were never enabled. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend protected original preservation and analysis on validated working copies. The governing distinction is: Preserving original evidence is essential for reliable investigation and potential legal use.

C:

Recommend restricted protected signing operations and independent key management oversight. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A certificate authority's signing key is available to several administrators without dual control. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend protected original preservation and analysis on validated working copies. The governing distinction is: Preserving original evidence is essential for reliable investigation and potential legal use.

Question 5

An IS auditor evaluates this situation: Multiple business units publish different values for the same customer account status without a nominated data steward. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?

  1. Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements.
  2. Quality management should evaluate defects, process capability and business outcomes across the lifecycle.
  3. Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions.
  4. Sourcing decisions should assess total risk and contractual fitness, not price alone.

Explanation

Correct Answer

C:

Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions. The corresponding audit procedure is: Reconcile discrepancies, lineage, quality metrics and stewardship assignments.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A finance spreadsheet contains confidential salary data but is labeled public in the enterprise catalog. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions. The governing distinction is: Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions.

B:

Quality management should evaluate defects, process capability and business outcomes across the lifecycle. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A software delivery group claims quality because unit tests pass, but repeated severe production incidents persist. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions. The governing distinction is: Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions.

D:

Sourcing decisions should assess total risk and contractual fitness, not price alone. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Procurement selects the lowest-cost cloud vendor while ignoring prior security incidents and regulatory audit rights. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions. The governing distinction is: Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions.

Question 6

Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A database access audit receives a file containing only current active users although it must assess leavers over the last quarter. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?

  1. Recalculate the deviation rate, sample size, population and observed exceptions.
  2. Reconcile event volume, source heartbeat, ingestion timestamps and excluded records.
  3. Inspect the engagement charter, agreed objectives, evidence plan and promised deliverables.
  4. Reconcile HR departures and access history against the access extract's coverage dates.

Explanation

Correct Answer

D:

Reconcile HR departures and access history against the access extract's coverage dates. The governing principle is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Recalculate the deviation rate, sample size, population and observed exceptions. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A sample of authorized changes contains failures, yet the auditor extrapolates a zero-percent exception rate. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Reconcile HR departures and access history against the access extract's coverage dates. The governing distinction is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test.

B:

Reconcile event volume, source heartbeat, ingestion timestamps and excluded records. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A continuous monitoring dashboard reports zero failed access attempts because its collection job stopped three days ago. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Reconcile HR departures and access history against the access extract's coverage dates. The governing distinction is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test.

C:

Inspect the engagement charter, agreed objectives, evidence plan and promised deliverables. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Management calls a readiness workshop a completed audit even though no testing or assurance opinion was planned. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Reconcile HR departures and access history against the access extract's coverage dates. The governing distinction is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test.

Question 7

An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A new security control requires two operators to approve destructive data deletion, but both approvals can use one shared account. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?

  1. Audit evidence collection must preserve confidentiality and authorized custody as well as usefulness.
  2. A detective control must include timely response and accountability to reduce exposure.
  3. Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable.
  4. Remediation after the audit period does not retroactively prove the control operated during that period.

Explanation

Correct Answer

C:

Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable. The corresponding audit procedure is: Inspect identity binding, approval logs and whether one person can trigger both approvals.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Audit evidence collection must preserve confidentiality and authorized custody as well as usefulness. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An auditor exports personally identifiable records to an unsecured laptop for analytics testing. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable. The governing distinction is: Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable.

B:

A detective control must include timely response and accountability to reduce exposure. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A monitoring alert is generated for suspicious transfers, but no owner is assigned to investigate or close it. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable. The governing distinction is: Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable.

D:

Remediation after the audit period does not retroactively prove the control operated during that period. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An auditee disputes an audit exception by supplying a later control fix, then asks to erase the historical finding. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable. The governing distinction is: Dual authorization is ineffective if the supposed approvers are not independently attributable.

Question 8

An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A sample of authorized changes contains failures, yet the auditor extrapolates a zero-percent exception rate. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?

  1. Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty.
  2. Audit project plans must match specialist resources to scope, dependencies and deadlines.
  3. Detective review does not automatically replace an effective preventive authorization control.
  4. A nonrepresentative selection can lead to unsupported conclusions about the entire population.

Explanation

Correct Answer

A:

Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty. The corresponding audit procedure is: Recalculate the deviation rate, sample size, population and observed exceptions.

Incorrect Answers

B:

Audit project plans must match specialist resources to scope, dependencies and deadlines. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A compliance audit is due in four weeks but its only database specialist is assigned to an unrelated engagement. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty. The governing distinction is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty.

C:

Detective review does not automatically replace an effective preventive authorization control. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A payroll system uses post-payment anomaly reports but has no approval requirement for changing bank accounts. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty. The governing distinction is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty.

D:

A nonrepresentative selection can lead to unsupported conclusions about the entire population. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An auditor samples only Monday transactions to conclude that weekend payments were controlled effectively. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty. The governing distinction is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty.

Question 9

Management reports that this issue has been corrected: An urgent firewall change is deployed without a ticket and later cannot be attributed to an approver. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?

  1. Production inventory confirms patch coverage or properly governed mitigation.
  2. A recovery test completes reconciled business transactions within required limits.
  3. Every emergency deployment links to an accountable approver and completed review.
  4. A measured peak-like exercise meets agreed recovery times and identifies capacity shortfalls.

Explanation

Correct Answer

C:

Every emergency deployment links to an accountable approver and completed review. It addresses it change, configuration, and patch management. Underlying audit concern: Emergency changes need accelerated but documented authorization and retrospective review.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Production inventory confirms patch coverage or properly governed mitigation. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A security patch is applied on test servers but production remains vulnerable for months without risk approval. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Every emergency deployment links to an accountable approver and completed review. The governing distinction is: Emergency changes need accelerated but documented authorization and retrospective review.

B:

A recovery test completes reconciled business transactions within required limits. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A disaster recovery runbook lists server boot order but omits database integrity and application acceptance tests. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Every emergency deployment links to an accountable approver and completed review. The governing distinction is: Emergency changes need accelerated but documented authorization and retrospective review.

D:

A measured peak-like exercise meets agreed recovery times and identifies capacity shortfalls. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A company rehearses DR annually on a clean weekend but its live recovery window overlaps payroll peaks and storage contention. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Every emergency deployment links to an accountable approver and completed review. The governing distinction is: Emergency changes need accelerated but documented authorization and retrospective review.

Question 10

Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A certificate authority's signing key is available to several administrators without dual control. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?

  1. Map shared-responsibility controls and review customer policies, logs and service settings.
  2. Inspect HSM controls, key ceremony logs, assigned roles and administrative sessions.
  3. Inspect trust-store settings, CRL/OCSP reachability, cache behavior and certificate status.
  4. Trace approved application flows, firewall rules and actual connection logs.

Explanation

Correct Answer

B:

Inspect HSM controls, key ceremony logs, assigned roles and administrative sessions. The governing principle is: CA private keys require strong custody and accountable access due to their trust impact.

Incorrect Answers

A:

Map shared-responsibility controls and review customer policies, logs and service settings. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A cloud provider's assurance report covers physical facilities but the customer's tenant encryption and IAM are untested. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Inspect HSM controls, key ceremony logs, assigned roles and administrative sessions. The governing distinction is: CA private keys require strong custody and accountable access due to their trust impact.

C:

Inspect trust-store settings, CRL/OCSP reachability, cache behavior and certificate status. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A revoked supplier certificate remains trusted by an application because revocation checks are disabled. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Inspect HSM controls, key ceremony logs, assigned roles and administrative sessions. The governing distinction is: CA private keys require strong custody and accountable access due to their trust impact.

D:

Trace approved application flows, firewall rules and actual connection logs. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A production network permits unrestricted traffic from user workstations to a sensitive payment database. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Inspect HSM controls, key ceremony logs, assigned roles and administrative sessions. The governing distinction is: CA private keys require strong custody and accountable access due to their trust impact.

Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) Practice Tests