Isaca CISA Practice Test 49
Question 480
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: An internal support agreement omits escalation responsibilities for incidents spanning two suppliers. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Compare exercise load, peak utilization, business windows and recovery capacity.
- Inspect log growth, alert thresholds, backups and space utilization trends.
- Review service boundaries, dependency maps and sample unresolved multivendor incidents.
- Compare SLA definitions, user-impacting incidents and critical application dependencies.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Review service boundaries, dependency maps and sample unresolved multivendor incidents. The governing principle is: Service-level oversight requires end-to-end responsibility and dispute or escalation paths.
Incorrect Answers
A:Compare exercise load, peak utilization, business windows and recovery capacity. 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 audit step is: Review service boundaries, dependency maps and sample unresolved multivendor incidents. The governing distinction is: Service-level oversight requires end-to-end responsibility and dispute or escalation paths.
B:Inspect log growth, alert thresholds, backups and space utilization trends. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Database transaction logs fill the only disk volume and cause a payment service outage. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review service boundaries, dependency maps and sample unresolved multivendor incidents. The governing distinction is: Service-level oversight requires end-to-end responsibility and dispute or escalation paths.
D:Compare SLA definitions, user-impacting incidents and critical application dependencies. 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 audit step is: Review service boundaries, dependency maps and sample unresolved multivendor incidents. The governing distinction is: Service-level oversight requires end-to-end responsibility and dispute or escalation paths.
Question 481
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: An internal auditor helped configure the privileged-access system now scheduled for an assurance review. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Later engagements show consistent method application and explain justified departures.
- A reviewer uninvolved in the original configuration signs off on workpapers and the conflict disposition.
- The issued report contains an evidence-grounded assessment and documented management response.
- Sample alerts have timely decisions, documented resolution and escalation when overdue.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:A reviewer uninvolved in the original configuration signs off on workpapers and the conflict disposition. It addresses is audit standards, guidelines, and codes of ethics. Underlying audit concern: Auditor objectivity is impaired by assessing one's own recent design work.
Incorrect Answers
A:Later engagements show consistent method application and explain justified departures. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An audit team changes sampling procedures each quarter without documenting why results are no longer comparable. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: A reviewer uninvolved in the original configuration signs off on workpapers and the conflict disposition. The governing distinction is: Auditor objectivity is impaired by assessing one's own recent design work.
C:The issued report contains an evidence-grounded assessment and documented management response. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A chief information officer asks the audit lead to remove a supported high-risk finding before it reaches the audit committee. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: A reviewer uninvolved in the original configuration signs off on workpapers and the conflict disposition. The governing distinction is: Auditor objectivity is impaired by assessing one's own recent design work.
D:Sample alerts have timely decisions, documented resolution and escalation when overdue. 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 verification is: A reviewer uninvolved in the original configuration signs off on workpapers and the conflict disposition. The governing distinction is: Auditor objectivity is impaired by assessing one's own recent design work.
Question 482
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A new web checkout design addresses user experience but fails to define controls for unauthorized refund changes. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Invalid or manipulated requests are blocked and legitimate transactions remain correct.
- Design tests reject unauthorized refunds and reconcile approved changes in records.
- Launch authorization shows accountable acceptance of all material residual issues.
- A development credential cannot alter production while authorized releases succeed.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Design tests reject unauthorized refunds and reconcile approved changes in records. It addresses control identification and design. Underlying audit concern: Control requirements should be identified from business risk during system design.
Incorrect Answers
A:Invalid or manipulated requests are blocked and legitimate transactions remain correct. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A payment API relies on user-supplied transaction values without server-side validation. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Design tests reject unauthorized refunds and reconcile approved changes in records. The governing distinction is: Control requirements should be identified from business risk during system design.
C:Launch authorization shows accountable acceptance of all material residual issues. 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 verification is: Design tests reject unauthorized refunds and reconcile approved changes in records. The governing distinction is: Control requirements should be identified from business risk during system design.
D:A development credential cannot alter production while authorized releases succeed. 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 verification is: Design tests reject unauthorized refunds and reconcile approved changes in records. The governing distinction is: Control requirements should be identified from business risk during system design.
Question 483
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: Procurement selects the lowest-cost cloud vendor while ignoring prior security incidents and regulatory audit rights. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Licensed deployment and procurement quantities reconcile to verified demand.
- The selected vendor meets mandatory criteria or has approved documented mitigation.
- Sample requests locate applicable systems and receive complete timely disposition.
- Signed obligations and monitoring evidence cover the organization's critical service needs.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:The selected vendor meets mandatory criteria or has approved documented mitigation. It addresses it vendor management. Underlying audit concern: Sourcing decisions should assess total risk and contractual fitness, not price alone.
Incorrect Answers
A:Licensed deployment and procurement quantities reconcile to verified demand. 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 verification is: The selected vendor meets mandatory criteria or has approved documented mitigation. The governing distinction is: Sourcing decisions should assess total risk and contractual fitness, not price alone.
C:Sample requests locate applicable systems and receive complete timely disposition. 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 verification is: The selected vendor meets mandatory criteria or has approved documented mitigation. The governing distinction is: Sourcing decisions should assess total risk and contractual fitness, not price alone.
D:Signed obligations and monitoring evidence cover the organization's critical service needs. 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 verification is: The selected vendor meets mandatory criteria or has approved documented mitigation. The governing distinction is: Sourcing decisions should assess total risk and contractual fitness, not price alone.
Question 484
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: An audit manager signs the report although a junior tester's exceptions have not received independent review. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Professional independence requires reporting supported risk conclusions despite management preferences.
- Audit project plans must match specialist resources to scope, dependencies and deadlines.
- Independent workpaper review is undermined by self-approval.
- Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions. The corresponding audit procedure is: Inspect review notes, exception disposition, supervisor sign-offs and unresolved procedures.
Incorrect Answers
A:Professional independence requires reporting supported risk conclusions despite management preferences. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A chief information officer asks the audit lead to remove a supported high-risk finding before it reaches the audit committee. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions. The governing distinction is: Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions.
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: Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions. The governing distinction is: Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions.
C:Independent workpaper review is undermined by self-approval. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An audit director relies on peer sign-offs that were completed by the same person who prepared each working paper. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions. The governing distinction is: Quality supervision requires sufficient review before relying on engagement conclusions.
Question 485
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A security patch is applied on test servers but production remains vulnerable for months without risk approval. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Examine invocation criteria, contact trees, authority matrix and availability assumptions.
- Review vulnerability severity, exposed assets, patch schedules and documented deferrals.
- Compare firewall revision logs, emergency approval procedures and operational impact.
- Review approved retention rules, system purge settings, storage capacity and sampled history.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Review vulnerability severity, exposed assets, patch schedules and documented deferrals. The governing principle is: Patch governance requires risk-based prioritization, deployment tracking and exception management.
Incorrect Answers
A:Examine invocation criteria, contact trees, authority matrix and availability assumptions. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A continuity plan lists the chief executive as the only emergency decision authority with no alternate. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review vulnerability severity, exposed assets, patch schedules and documented deferrals. The governing distinction is: Patch governance requires risk-based prioritization, deployment tracking and exception management.
C:Compare firewall revision logs, emergency approval procedures and operational impact. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An urgent firewall change is deployed without a ticket and later cannot be attributed to an approver. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review vulnerability severity, exposed assets, patch schedules and documented deferrals. The governing distinction is: Patch governance requires risk-based prioritization, deployment tracking and exception management.
D:Review approved retention rules, system purge settings, storage capacity and sampled history. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A financial application retains operational logs for only a week although investigation rules require six months. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review vulnerability severity, exposed assets, patch schedules and documented deferrals. The governing distinction is: Patch governance requires risk-based prioritization, deployment tracking and exception management.
Question 486
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: Annual phishing training records show high completion but employees repeatedly submit credentials to simulated malicious sites. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Recommend coverage monitoring and controlled response to stale or missing agents.
- Recommend role-based training prerequisites and tracked renewal for external users.
- Recommend promptly preserving appropriately scoped logs and cloud snapshots with custody records.
- Recommend targeted follow-up training and safe reporting reinforcement based on measured gaps.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Recommend targeted follow-up training and safe reporting reinforcement based on measured gaps. The relevant control principle is: Awareness effectiveness should be measured by behavior and risk reduction, not attendance alone. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Repeat risky behavior declines and timely phishing reporting increases.
Incorrect Answers
A:Recommend coverage monitoring and controlled response to stale or missing agents. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An endpoint protection console reports agents installed but several laptops have not checked in for months. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend targeted follow-up training and safe reporting reinforcement based on measured gaps. The governing distinction is: Awareness effectiveness should be measured by behavior and risk reduction, not attendance alone.
B:Recommend role-based training prerequisites and tracked renewal for external users. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Contractor onboarding omits data-handling training although contractors access classified research files. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend targeted follow-up training and safe reporting reinforcement based on measured gaps. The governing distinction is: Awareness effectiveness should be measured by behavior and risk reduction, not attendance alone.
C: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 targeted follow-up training and safe reporting reinforcement based on measured gaps. The governing distinction is: Awareness effectiveness should be measured by behavior and risk reduction, not attendance alone.
Question 487
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A cyber policy states that access must be secure but provides no enforceable standard for privileged identities. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Inspect signed contractual terms, legal interpretation, retention rules and purge job output.
- Review policy hierarchy, technical baseline, role ownership and exception approvals.
- Inspect exception inventory, supported cloud capabilities, risk assessments and approval rights.
- Review committee charters, delegation matrices and a sample of disputed approvals.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Review policy hierarchy, technical baseline, role ownership and exception approvals. The governing principle is: Policies require supporting measurable standards, procedures and accountable enforcement.
Incorrect Answers
A:Inspect signed contractual terms, legal interpretation, retention rules and purge job output. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: The legal team interprets a contractual data retention clause differently from IT's automatic deletion schedule. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review policy hierarchy, technical baseline, role ownership and exception approvals. The governing distinction is: Policies require supporting measurable standards, procedures and accountable enforcement.
C:Inspect exception inventory, supported cloud capabilities, risk assessments and approval rights. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A legacy security standard remains mandatory even though new approved cloud services cannot technically meet it. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review policy hierarchy, technical baseline, role ownership and exception approvals. The governing distinction is: Policies require supporting measurable standards, procedures and accountable enforcement.
D:Review committee charters, delegation matrices and a sample of disputed approvals. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Two subsidiaries have overlapping IT decision boards with conflicting authority to approve enterprise architecture exceptions. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Review policy hierarchy, technical baseline, role ownership and exception approvals. The governing distinction is: Policies require supporting measurable standards, procedures and accountable enforcement.
Question 488
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: Contractor onboarding omits data-handling training although contractors access classified research files. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Awareness effectiveness should be measured by behavior and risk reduction, not attendance alone.
- Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted.
- Certificate trust decisions should account for revocation and current validity requirements.
- Security program maturity requires operational evidence rather than documentation counts alone.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted. The corresponding audit procedure is: Compare contractor rosters, entitlements, training records and onboarding gates.
Incorrect Answers
A:Awareness effectiveness should be measured by behavior and risk reduction, not attendance alone. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: Annual phishing training records show high completion but employees repeatedly submit credentials to simulated malicious sites. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted. The governing distinction is: Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted.
C:Certificate trust decisions should account for revocation and current validity requirements. 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 principle is: Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted. The governing distinction is: Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted.
D:Security program maturity requires operational evidence rather than documentation counts alone. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A compliance dashboard reports all policies published but does not measure whether their security controls operate. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted. The governing distinction is: Awareness programs must reach all relevant roles before sensitive access is granted.
Question 489
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A data migration design encrypts transfers but does not detect missing or duplicated customer records. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Invalid or manipulated requests are blocked and legitimate transactions remain correct.
- Sample and aggregate source-to-target totals agree or documented exceptions are resolved.
- Unauthorized promotions fail while approved releases retain auditable provenance.
- Sprint samples show security controls implemented and tested before acceptance.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Sample and aggregate source-to-target totals agree or documented exceptions are resolved. It addresses control identification and design. Underlying audit concern: Confidentiality does not replace integrity and completeness controls for converted data.
Incorrect Answers
A:Invalid or manipulated requests are blocked and legitimate transactions remain correct. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A payment API relies on user-supplied transaction values without server-side validation. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Sample and aggregate source-to-target totals agree or documented exceptions are resolved. The governing distinction is: Confidentiality does not replace integrity and completeness controls for converted data.
C:Unauthorized promotions fail while approved releases retain auditable provenance. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A DevOps team deploys from automated pipelines with no independent approval for sensitive production promotions. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Sample and aggregate source-to-target totals agree or documented exceptions are resolved. The governing distinction is: Confidentiality does not replace integrity and completeness controls for converted data.
D:Sprint samples show security controls implemented and tested before 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 verification is: Sample and aggregate source-to-target totals agree or documented exceptions are resolved. The governing distinction is: Confidentiality does not replace integrity and completeness controls for converted data.
Question 490
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: An auditor discovers an urgent uncontained data disclosure but plans to mention it only in the quarterly report. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Analytics-assisted findings still require understandable criteria and independent validation.
- Audit evidence collection must preserve confidentiality and authorized custody as well as usefulness.
- Actionable audit findings link condition, criteria, cause, effect and corrective ownership.
- Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels. The corresponding audit procedure is: Confirm disclosure scope, evidence credibility and notification obligations with relevant owners.
Incorrect Answers
A:Analytics-assisted findings still require understandable criteria and independent validation. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An anomaly model ranks high-value payments as suspicious but the auditor cannot explain its scoring or false-positive rate. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels. The governing distinction is: Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels.
B: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: Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels. The governing distinction is: Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels.
C:Actionable audit findings link condition, criteria, cause, effect and corrective ownership. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A report calls a firewall exception critical but provides no business impact, cause or responsible owner. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels. The governing distinction is: Material time-sensitive risks require prompt escalation through defined audit channels.