Isaca CISA Practice Test 29
Question 280
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A sales team stores client contracts in an unapproved personal file-sharing account for convenience. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Confidential contracts reside only in approved managed repositories with appropriate access.
- Each retired device reconciles to approved erasure or destruction evidence and authorized release.
- Unauthorized formula changes are detected and regulatory calculations reconcile.
- Unauthorized script edits are denied and authorized revisions are traceable.
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:Confidential contracts reside only in approved managed repositories with appropriate access. It addresses shadow it and end-user computing. Underlying audit concern: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls.
Incorrect Answers
B:Each retired device reconciles to approved erasure or destruction evidence and authorized release. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A retail chain replaces laptops but leaves decommissioned drives untracked with a disposal contractor. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Confidential contracts reside only in approved managed repositories with appropriate access. The governing distinction is: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls.
C:Unauthorized formula changes are detected and regulatory calculations reconcile. 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 verification is: Confidential contracts reside only in approved managed repositories with appropriate access. The governing distinction is: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls.
D:Unauthorized script edits are denied and authorized revisions are traceable. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An operator can edit scheduled payroll scripts directly in production without independent approval. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Confidential contracts reside only in approved managed repositories with appropriate access. The governing distinction is: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls.
Question 281
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A sample of authorized changes contains failures, yet the auditor extrapolates a zero-percent exception rate. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Present a concise prioritized executive summary with detailed workpapers available on request.
- Have the audit director assign an independent reviewer and disclose the conflict to appropriate oversight.
- Expand testing or qualify the conclusion according to sampling risk and materiality.
- Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Expand testing or qualify the conclusion according to sampling risk and materiality. The relevant control principle is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty. A meaningful follow-up should establish: The reporting workpaper transparently reconciles exceptions to the supported conclusion.
Incorrect Answers
A:Present a concise prioritized executive summary with detailed workpapers available on request. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A board report includes hundreds of raw test details but fails to distinguish enterprise-critical findings. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Expand testing or qualify the conclusion according to sampling risk and materiality. The governing distinction is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty.
B:Have the audit director assign an independent reviewer and disclose the conflict to appropriate oversight. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An internal auditor helped configure the privileged-access system now scheduled for an assurance review. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Expand testing or qualify the conclusion according to sampling risk and materiality. The governing distinction is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty.
D: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: Expand testing or qualify the conclusion according to sampling risk and materiality. The governing distinction is: Sample conclusions must reflect observed deviations and appropriate uncertainty.
Question 282
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: An auditor flags duplicated supplier invoices by invoice number alone and ignores vendor identifiers and credit notes. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Audit evidence reliability depends on source, integrity, relevance and timing.
- A zero-exception result is unreliable if data completeness and pipeline health are unverified.
- Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions.
- Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions. The corresponding audit procedure is: Inspect data model, supplier identifiers, credit indicators and reconciliation counts.
Incorrect Answers
A:Audit evidence reliability depends on source, integrity, relevance and timing. 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 principle is: Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions. The governing distinction is: Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions.
B:A zero-exception result is unreliable if data completeness and pipeline health are unverified. 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 principle is: Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions. The governing distinction is: Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions.
D:Evidence integrity and independence are weakened when subjects can alter the only record. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A vendor's audit log is editable by the same administrator whose changes are under investigation. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions. The governing distinction is: Analytics rules need valid business keys and exception handling to avoid false conclusions.
Question 283
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A sales team stores client contracts in an unapproved personal file-sharing account for convenience. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Recommend protected incident evidence retention and audited deletion rules.
- Recommend sanctioned collaboration or compensating controls and managed migration.
- Recommend controlled formula protection, independent review and periodic reconciliation.
- Recommend independent communications paths or explicit mitigation for shared exposure.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Recommend sanctioned collaboration or compensating controls and managed migration. The relevant control principle is: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Confidential contracts reside only in approved managed repositories with appropriate access.
Incorrect Answers
A:Recommend protected incident evidence retention and audited deletion rules. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A service desk deletes incident attachments when tickets are closed, preventing later regulatory review. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend sanctioned collaboration or compensating controls and managed migration. The governing distinction is: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls.
C: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 sanctioned collaboration or compensating controls and managed migration. The governing distinction is: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls.
D:Recommend independent communications paths or explicit mitigation for shared exposure. 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 recommendation is: Recommend sanctioned collaboration or compensating controls and managed migration. The governing distinction is: Unsanctioned services can bypass enterprise security, retention and legal controls.
Question 284
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A merger adds a regulated customer database after the audit plan was approved, but the plan is treated as unchangeable. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Review the acquisition risk assessment, legal obligations and remaining audit capacity.
- Inspect the engagement charter, agreed objectives, evidence plan and promised deliverables.
- Examine threat scenarios, regulatory exposure, process dependencies and proposed exclusions.
- Obtain the complete critical-service inventory and independent exercise records.
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:Review the acquisition risk assessment, legal obligations and remaining audit capacity. The governing principle is: Risk-based audit planning is dynamic when business context and material exposures change.
Incorrect Answers
B: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: Review the acquisition risk assessment, legal obligations and remaining audit capacity. The governing distinction is: Risk-based audit planning is dynamic when business context and material exposures change.
C:Examine threat scenarios, regulatory exposure, process dependencies and proposed exclusions. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A business unit requests that internal audit review only controls selected by its system owner. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review the acquisition risk assessment, legal obligations and remaining audit capacity. The governing distinction is: Risk-based audit planning is dynamic when business context and material exposures change.
D:Obtain the complete critical-service inventory and independent exercise records. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Management offers ten handpicked successful failover demonstrations as evidence that every critical service has tested recovery. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review the acquisition risk assessment, legal obligations and remaining audit capacity. The governing distinction is: Risk-based audit planning is dynamic when business context and material exposures change.
Question 285
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A remote-access gateway accepts a password alone for high-impact production administrators. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Conflicting business permissions create opportunities for unauthorized transactions.
- An attack sequence should be assessed using corroborated indicators and business impact.
- Security test findings require contextual verification and risk assessment before conclusions.
- Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy. The corresponding audit procedure is: Review access paths, authentication factors, bypass methods and login activity.
Incorrect Answers
A:Conflicting business permissions create opportunities for unauthorized transactions. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An accounts-payable supervisor can both create vendors and approve their first payments. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy. The governing distinction is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
B: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: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy. The governing distinction is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
C:Security test findings require contextual verification and risk assessment before conclusions. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A vulnerability scanner reports a critical web flaw but the service is behind a compensating control and no validation occurs. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy. The governing distinction is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
Question 286
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A finance spreadsheet contains confidential salary data but is labeled public in the enterprise catalog. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Technology strategy should translate enterprise value objectives into measurable performance outcomes.
- Vendor exit planning is necessary to manage concentration and operational continuity risk.
- Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements.
- Data lifecycle governance must extend to replicas, backups and derived datasets.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements. The corresponding audit procedure is: Review dataset content, applicable classification rules and access decisions.
Incorrect Answers
A:Technology strategy should translate enterprise value objectives into measurable performance outcomes. 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 principle is: Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements. The governing distinction is: Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements.
B:Vendor exit planning is necessary to manage concentration and operational continuity risk. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A critical provider exits the market and the customer has no usable data export or transition rights. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements. The governing distinction is: Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements.
D:Data lifecycle governance must extend to replicas, backups and derived datasets. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A cloud analytics environment retains raw regulated data after the approved business retention period. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements. The governing distinction is: Classification should reflect data sensitivity, business purpose and governing requirements.
Question 287
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A payment API relies on user-supplied transaction values without server-side validation. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Recommend preventive entitlement checks and independent monitoring in design acceptance criteria.
- Recommend controlled traceability updates and reapproval when significant needs change.
- Recommend independent server-side business validation and abuse testing before release.
- Recommend removing unnecessary launch privileges and recording any approved residual risk.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Recommend independent server-side business validation and abuse testing before release. The relevant control principle is: Application control design must validate untrusted inputs against authorized business rules. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Invalid or manipulated requests are blocked and legitimate transactions remain correct.
Incorrect Answers
A:Recommend preventive entitlement checks and independent monitoring in design acceptance criteria. 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 recommendation is: Recommend independent server-side business validation and abuse testing before release. The governing distinction is: Application control design must validate untrusted inputs against authorized business rules.
B:Recommend controlled traceability updates and reapproval when significant needs change. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A waterfall project signs off design once, then production requirements change without design traceability. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend independent server-side business validation and abuse testing before release. The governing distinction is: Application control design must validate untrusted inputs against authorized business rules.
D:Recommend removing unnecessary launch privileges and recording any approved residual risk. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: After a new billing platform launches, unresolved temporary broad administrator permissions are treated as permanent. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend independent server-side business validation and abuse testing before release. The governing distinction is: Application control design must validate untrusted inputs against authorized business rules.
Question 288
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A financial application retains operational logs for only a week although investigation rules require six months. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Continuity communication should address external dependencies and affected stakeholders.
- Availability analysis must include upstream shared dependencies, not just redundant hosts.
- Reliable log correlation depends on consistent time and original event provenance.
- Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements. The corresponding audit procedure is: Review approved retention rules, system purge settings, storage capacity and sampled history.
Incorrect Answers
A:Continuity communication should address external dependencies and affected stakeholders. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A regional outage exercise reveals that business partners were never included in the communications tree. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements. The governing distinction is: Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements.
B:Availability analysis must include upstream shared dependencies, not just redundant hosts. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A redundant web cluster shares one DNS resolver and becomes inaccessible when that resolver fails. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements. The governing distinction is: Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements.
C:Reliable log correlation depends on consistent time and original event provenance. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Multiple servers use unsynchronized clocks so a transaction appears to complete before it begins. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements. The governing distinction is: Log retention should align with business, legal, incident and privacy requirements.
Question 289
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A completed software project is archived without documenting incidents and change causes from the first operating month. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Examine backlog prioritization, definition of done, security tests and sprint acceptance.
- Compare deployment manifests, access logs, runtime configuration and approvals.
- Examine initial incidents, defect trends, handover documents and user support readiness.
- Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Examine initial incidents, defect trends, handover documents and user support readiness. The governing principle is: Lessons learned and operational handoff should feed governance and future improvements.
Incorrect Answers
A:Examine backlog prioritization, definition of done, security tests and sprint acceptance. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An agile team delivers features every sprint but security stories are never included in the product backlog. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Examine initial incidents, defect trends, handover documents and user support readiness. The governing distinction is: Lessons learned and operational handoff should feed governance and future improvements.
B:Compare deployment manifests, access logs, runtime configuration and approvals. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A production release changes database permissions manually after the reviewed deployment package was approved. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Examine initial incidents, defect trends, handover documents and user support readiness. The governing distinction is: Lessons learned and operational handoff should feed governance and future improvements.
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: Examine initial incidents, defect trends, handover documents and user support readiness. The governing distinction is: Lessons learned and operational handoff should feed governance and future improvements.
Question 290
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A sales system's backup schedule is chosen before the business determines acceptable data loss. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Quantify financial and operational consequences of lost transactions over time.
- Interview process owners, quantify disruption impacts and map dependent systems.
- Map DNS architecture, cache behavior, alternate paths and outage records.
- Compare discovery scans, inventory records, host ownership and vendor support status.
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:Quantify financial and operational consequences of lost transactions over time. It is more reliable than assuming the claimed control state from discussion alone. The governing principle is: RPO should be derived from business impact and transactional tolerance, not backup convenience.
Incorrect Answers
B: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: Quantify financial and operational consequences of lost transactions over time. The governing distinction is: RPO should be derived from business impact and transactional tolerance, not backup convenience.
C:Map DNS architecture, cache behavior, alternate paths and outage records. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A redundant web cluster shares one DNS resolver and becomes inaccessible when that resolver fails. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Quantify financial and operational consequences of lost transactions over time. The governing distinction is: RPO should be derived from business impact and transactional tolerance, not backup convenience.
D:Compare discovery scans, inventory records, host ownership and vendor support status. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An IT inventory lists hundreds of production servers without owners or support end dates. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Quantify financial and operational consequences of lost transactions over time. The governing distinction is: RPO should be derived from business impact and transactional tolerance, not backup convenience.