Isaca CISA Practice Test 16
Question 150
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: An IT inventory lists hundreds of production servers without owners or support end dates. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Software asset records must reconcile acquisitions, deployment, retirement and entitlements.
- Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions.
- Infrastructure health alone does not represent availability of external service dependencies.
- Service agreements should define measurable outcomes aligned with customer needs.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions. The corresponding audit procedure is: Compare discovery scans, inventory records, host ownership and vendor support status.
Incorrect Answers
A:Software asset records must reconcile acquisitions, deployment, retirement and entitlements. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A company continues paying software maintenance for applications deleted during a consolidation. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions. The governing distinction is: Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions.
C:Infrastructure health alone does not represent availability of external service dependencies. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A cloud-hosted application has healthy virtual machines but customer logins fail when its external identity service is unavailable. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions. The governing distinction is: Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions.
D:Service agreements should define measurable outcomes aligned with customer needs. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A supplier SLA measures network interface uptime while the business requires successful customer transactions. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions. The governing distinction is: Effective inventory management supports accountable maintenance, security and lifecycle decisions.
Question 151
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A chief technology officer both accepts enterprise cyber risk and certifies the independence of the risk oversight function. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Compare contract clauses, business impact analysis, vendor performance history and service credits.
- Review risk committee charters, decision rights and reporting relationships.
- Compare the current regulator publication, policy inventory and reporting workflow dates.
- Interview business sponsors and compare strategic priorities with proposed IT measures.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Review risk committee charters, decision rights and reporting relationships. The governing principle is: Governance should define risk ownership and objective challenge across accountable roles.
Incorrect Answers
A:Compare contract clauses, business impact analysis, vendor performance history and service credits. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A SaaS provider promises 99.9% uptime in a brochure but the signed agreement contains no measurable recovery commitment. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review risk committee charters, decision rights and reporting relationships. The governing distinction is: Governance should define risk ownership and objective challenge across accountable roles.
C:Compare the current regulator publication, policy inventory and reporting workflow dates. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A bank's compliance register still lists a superseded regulatory reporting deadline after a rule change. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review risk committee charters, decision rights and reporting relationships. The governing distinction is: Governance should define risk ownership and objective challenge across accountable roles.
D:Interview business sponsors and compare strategic priorities with proposed IT measures. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An IT strategy document lists new tools but has no targets for customer availability or service costs. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review risk committee charters, decision rights and reporting relationships. The governing distinction is: Governance should define risk ownership and objective challenge across accountable roles.
Question 152
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A data processing vendor consistently misses recovery times but management pays service credits without correcting the cause. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Recommend an integrated support model with named owners and escalation milestones.
- Recommend controlled formula protection, independent review and periodic reconciliation.
- Recommend sustained remediation, contingency planning and governance escalation.
- Recommend end-to-end alternate-site exercises and remediation of service-access gaps.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Recommend sustained remediation, contingency planning and governance escalation. The relevant control principle is: Service credits alone may not address underlying operational and continuity risk. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Recovery performance meets required levels or management implements a documented alternative.
Incorrect Answers
A:Recommend an integrated support model with named owners and escalation milestones. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An internal support agreement omits escalation responsibilities for incidents spanning two suppliers. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend sustained remediation, contingency planning and governance escalation. The governing distinction is: Service credits alone may not address underlying operational and continuity risk.
B:Recommend controlled formula protection, independent review and periodic reconciliation. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A spreadsheet with editable formulas calculates regulatory capital but has no validation or change history. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend sustained remediation, contingency planning and governance escalation. The governing distinction is: Service credits alone may not address underlying operational and continuity risk.
D:Recommend end-to-end alternate-site exercises and remediation of service-access gaps. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A call center continuity binder lists alternate desks but employees cannot access the customer service application from that location. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend sustained remediation, contingency planning and governance escalation. The governing distinction is: Service credits alone may not address underlying operational and continuity risk.
Question 153
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A fire-suppression system passes annual inspections but a rack's temperature sensors have never alarmed under test. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Compare renewed certificate inventory, deployed endpoints, validity dates and chain health.
- Review thermal baselines, alarm thresholds, sensor coverage and escalation records.
- Review classification rules, false-positive cases, override frequency and business needs.
- Inspect one-line diagrams, panel dependencies, generator capacity and test history.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Review thermal baselines, alarm thresholds, sensor coverage and escalation records. The governing principle is: Environmental protection requires functioning detection, alerting and appropriate response.
Incorrect Answers
A:Compare renewed certificate inventory, deployed endpoints, validity dates and chain health. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An internal portal outage follows certificate expiration despite an automated renewal job that reported success. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review thermal baselines, alarm thresholds, sensor coverage and escalation records. The governing distinction is: Environmental protection requires functioning detection, alerting and appropriate response.
C:Review classification rules, false-positive cases, override frequency and business needs. 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 audit step is: Review thermal baselines, alarm thresholds, sensor coverage and escalation records. The governing distinction is: Environmental protection requires functioning detection, alerting and appropriate response.
D:Inspect one-line diagrams, panel dependencies, generator capacity and test history. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A data center's redundant power feeds terminate at the same upstream distribution panel. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review thermal baselines, alarm thresholds, sensor coverage and escalation records. The governing distinction is: Environmental protection requires functioning detection, alerting and appropriate response.
Question 154
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A vendor's audit log is editable by the same administrator whose changes are under investigation. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- The workpaper records source, date, collection method and reconciliation to original records.
- A test change cannot bypass approval, and independent exception review still operates.
- Relevant events match across trusted sources and retention controls prevent undetected alteration.
- Each sampled leaver can be traced from HR termination to historical account status and removal time.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Relevant events match across trusted sources and retention controls prevent undetected alteration. It addresses audit evidence collection techniques. Underlying audit concern: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.
Incorrect Answers
A:The workpaper records source, date, collection method and reconciliation to original records. 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 verification is: Relevant events match across trusted sources and retention controls prevent undetected alteration. The governing distinction is: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.
B:A test change cannot bypass approval, and independent exception review still operates. 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 verification is: Relevant events match across trusted sources and retention controls prevent undetected alteration. The governing distinction is: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.
D:Each sampled leaver can be traced from HR termination to historical account status and removal time. 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 verification is: Relevant events match across trusted sources and retention controls prevent undetected alteration. The governing distinction is: Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.
Question 155
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A service provider requests full identity documents when a masked identifier would satisfy a support task. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Privacy response effectiveness depends on a reliable data inventory and ownership.
- Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors.
- Policies require supporting measurable standards, procedures and accountable enforcement.
- Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors. The corresponding audit procedure is: Assess the processor's actual need, contractual safeguards and available masking methods.
Incorrect Answers
A:Privacy response effectiveness depends on a reliable data inventory and ownership. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An organization receives data subject requests but cannot locate personal records spread across cloud and on-premise systems. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors. The governing distinction is: Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors.
C:Policies require supporting measurable standards, procedures and accountable enforcement. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A cyber policy states that access must be secure but provides no enforceable standard for privileged identities. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors. The governing distinction is: Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors.
D:Data governance requires clear ownership, quality rules and authorized source definitions. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Multiple business units publish different values for the same customer account status without a nominated data steward. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors. The governing distinction is: Privacy controls should minimize personal data shared with processors.
Question 156
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A highly available application uses only one privileged administrator who is unavailable during a holiday. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Interview process owners, quantify disruption impacts and map dependent systems.
- Review staffing coverage, privileged break-glass processes and knowledge transfer.
- Map physical carrier routes, provider concentration and failure history.
- Reconcile automated discovery, service dependencies and change history.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Review staffing coverage, privileged break-glass processes and knowledge transfer. The governing principle is: Resilience depends on trained personnel and procedures as well as redundant technology.
Incorrect Answers
A:Interview process owners, quantify disruption impacts and map dependent systems. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A continuity plan treats a rarely used test portal and a critical emergency dispatch system as equally urgent. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review staffing coverage, privileged break-glass processes and knowledge transfer. The governing distinction is: Resilience depends on trained personnel and procedures as well as redundant technology.
C:Map physical carrier routes, provider concentration and failure history. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Two data centers have separate buildings but share one telecom carrier and underground duct. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review staffing coverage, privileged break-glass processes and knowledge transfer. The governing distinction is: Resilience depends on trained personnel and procedures as well as redundant technology.
D:Reconcile automated discovery, service dependencies and change history. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A configuration database lists a retired server as the active owner of a production application. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review staffing coverage, privileged break-glass processes and knowledge transfer. The governing distinction is: Resilience depends on trained personnel and procedures as well as redundant technology.
Question 157
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A program steering committee receives status reports from one vendor but has no visibility into independent testing delays. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Trace refund abuse scenarios, authorization roles and transaction integrity needs.
- Review test completion, integration dependencies, issue severity and reporting practices.
- Review steering committee minutes, stage-gate decisions and responsibility assignments.
- Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Review test completion, integration dependencies, issue severity and reporting practices. The governing principle is: Effective oversight requires consolidated delivery reporting and objective milestone evidence.
Incorrect Answers
A:Trace refund abuse scenarios, authorization roles and transaction integrity needs. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A new web checkout design addresses user experience but fails to define controls for unauthorized refund changes. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review test completion, integration dependencies, issue severity and reporting practices. The governing distinction is: Effective oversight requires consolidated delivery reporting and objective milestone evidence.
C:Review steering committee minutes, stage-gate decisions and responsibility assignments. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A mobile-banking project reaches launch without an accountable sponsor for unresolved regulatory requirements. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review test completion, integration dependencies, issue severity and reporting practices. The governing distinction is: Effective oversight requires consolidated delivery reporting and objective milestone evidence.
D:Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A new HR system meets its technical go-live date but fails the promised reduction in onboarding time. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review test completion, integration dependencies, issue severity and reporting practices. The governing distinction is: Effective oversight requires consolidated delivery reporting and objective milestone evidence.
Question 158
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A production release changes database permissions manually after the reviewed deployment package was approved. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Compare deployment manifests, access logs, runtime configuration and approvals.
- Review steering committee minutes, stage-gate decisions and responsibility assignments.
- Review credential scope, pipeline identities, environment boundaries and access records.
- Review key ownership, import support, encrypted data types and restoration requirements.
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:Compare deployment manifests, access logs, runtime configuration and approvals. The governing principle is: Configuration changes must remain controlled, traceable and aligned with approved baselines.
Incorrect Answers
B:Review steering committee minutes, stage-gate decisions and responsibility assignments. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A mobile-banking project reaches launch without an accountable sponsor for unresolved regulatory requirements. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Compare deployment manifests, access logs, runtime configuration and approvals. The governing distinction is: Configuration changes must remain controlled, traceable and aligned with approved baselines.
C:Review credential scope, pipeline identities, environment boundaries and access records. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A team uses the same deployment credentials for development, test and production systems. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Compare deployment manifests, access logs, runtime configuration and approvals. The governing distinction is: Configuration changes must remain controlled, traceable and aligned with approved baselines.
D:Review key ownership, import support, encrypted data types and restoration requirements. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A cloud move assumes existing encryption keys will work in the target without import or custody testing. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Compare deployment manifests, access logs, runtime configuration and approvals. The governing distinction is: Configuration changes must remain controlled, traceable and aligned with approved baselines.
Question 159
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A virtualization administrator can snapshot and download regulated production virtual machines without oversight. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Exfiltration control assessment should cover relevant channels, not only email.
- Provider assurances do not automatically cover customer-operated security responsibilities.
- An attack sequence should be assessed using corroborated indicators and business impact.
- Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance. The corresponding audit procedure is: Review virtual infrastructure roles, snapshot events, datastore permissions and monitoring.
Incorrect Answers
A:Exfiltration control assessment should cover relevant channels, not only email. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A DLP tool blocks confidential document attachments but ignores similar files uploaded through approved web browsers. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance. The governing distinction is: Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance.
B:Provider assurances do not automatically cover customer-operated security responsibilities. 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 principle is: Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance. The governing distinction is: Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance.
C:An attack sequence should be assessed using corroborated indicators and business impact. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Repeated impossible-travel sign-ins occur before a finance account initiates unusual transfers. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance. The governing distinction is: Hypervisor privileges can expose entire workloads and require strict governance.
Question 160
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A vendor incident triggers a temporary exception but the residual risk is never reconsidered after six months. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Recommend reassessing impact and escalating acceptance above delegated limits.
- Recommend a documented deployment and review cycle for the revised standard.
- Recommend current entitlement reconciliation before renewal commitments.
- Recommend expiry, risk reassessment and owner approval for continued exceptions.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Recommend expiry, risk reassessment and owner approval for continued exceptions. The relevant control principle is: Risk exceptions require periodic review against changing exposure and acceptance authority. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Expired exceptions close or are explicitly renewed with current evidence and risk ownership.
Incorrect Answers
A:Recommend reassessing impact and escalating acceptance above delegated limits. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A department labels a customer outage risk acceptable because its probability is low without evaluating financial impact. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend expiry, risk reassessment and owner approval for continued exceptions. The governing distinction is: Risk exceptions require periodic review against changing exposure and acceptance authority.
B:Recommend a documented deployment and review cycle for the revised standard. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A new corporate service standard is rolled out without training, version control or effectiveness reviews. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend expiry, risk reassessment and owner approval for continued exceptions. The governing distinction is: Risk exceptions require periodic review against changing exposure and acceptance authority.
C:Recommend current entitlement reconciliation before renewal commitments. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Software licenses are renewed using last year's device counts despite major decommissioning. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend expiry, risk reassessment and owner approval for continued exceptions. The governing distinction is: Risk exceptions require periodic review against changing exposure and acceptance authority.