Isaca CISA Practice Test 53
Question 520
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: An internal portal outage follows certificate expiration despite an automated renewal job that reported success. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Repeat infections decline and validated corrective controls remain effective.
- An unauthorized administrator cannot export or use the CA signing key.
- The reconstructed sequence includes initial access, activity and response without unexplained gaps.
- A controlled renewal leaves the active endpoint with a valid trusted certificate.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:A controlled renewal leaves the active endpoint with a valid trusted certificate. It addresses public key infrastructure. Underlying audit concern: PKI monitoring should validate deployed certificates and trust paths, not just job status.
Incorrect Answers
A:Repeat infections decline and validated corrective controls remain effective. 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 verification is: A controlled renewal leaves the active endpoint with a valid trusted certificate. The governing distinction is: PKI monitoring should validate deployed certificates and trust paths, not just job status.
B:An unauthorized administrator cannot export or use the CA signing key. 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 verification is: A controlled renewal leaves the active endpoint with a valid trusted certificate. The governing distinction is: PKI monitoring should validate deployed certificates and trust paths, not just job status.
C:The reconstructed sequence includes initial access, activity and response without unexplained gaps. 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 verification is: A controlled renewal leaves the active endpoint with a valid trusted certificate. The governing distinction is: PKI monitoring should validate deployed certificates and trust paths, not just job status.
Question 521
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A cloud incident investigator exports only the latest activity logs, omitting records from the suspected initial compromise. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Permitted application transactions work while direct unauthorized client access is denied.
- Image hashes match and each custody transfer is attributable and time-stamped.
- The reconstructed sequence includes initial access, activity and response without unexplained gaps.
- Users cannot obtain sensitive access until required training is recorded.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:The reconstructed sequence includes initial access, activity and response without unexplained gaps. It addresses evidence collection and forensics. Underlying audit concern: Forensic collection scope should preserve a complete relevant timeline within lawful boundaries.
Incorrect Answers
A:Permitted application transactions work while direct unauthorized client access is denied. 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 verification is: The reconstructed sequence includes initial access, activity and response without unexplained gaps. The governing distinction is: Forensic collection scope should preserve a complete relevant timeline within lawful boundaries.
B:Image hashes match and each custody transfer is attributable and time-stamped. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An investigator copies a suspect laptop disk without recording who handled it or whether the image changed. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: The reconstructed sequence includes initial access, activity and response without unexplained gaps. The governing distinction is: Forensic collection scope should preserve a complete relevant timeline within lawful boundaries.
D:Users cannot obtain sensitive access until required training is recorded. 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 verification is: The reconstructed sequence includes initial access, activity and response without unexplained gaps. The governing distinction is: Forensic collection scope should preserve a complete relevant timeline within lawful boundaries.
Question 522
An IS auditor evaluates this situation: A call center continuity binder lists alternate desks but employees cannot access the customer service application from that location. Which audit principle MOST directly applies to this situation?
- Change control should assess end-to-end service dependencies and rollback feasibility.
- BCP governance requires delegation and clear command arrangements under disruption.
- RPO should be derived from business impact and transactional tolerance, not backup convenience.
- Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes. The corresponding audit procedure is: Review alternate site connectivity, authentication, software licensing and staff procedures.
Incorrect Answers
A:Change control should assess end-to-end service dependencies and rollback feasibility. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A routine database update causes outages because no dependency assessment included reporting services. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes. The governing distinction is: Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes.
B:BCP governance requires delegation and clear command arrangements under disruption. 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 principle is: Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes. The governing distinction is: Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes.
C:RPO should be derived from business impact and transactional tolerance, not backup convenience. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A sales system's backup schedule is chosen before the business determines acceptable data loss. In the present case, the most directly relevant principle is: Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes. The governing distinction is: Continuity plans must integrate people, facilities, technology and business processes.
Question 523
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A penetration test exercises production authentication without authorization or a recovery plan. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Unauthorized large plaintext exports are prevented or promptly detected despite disk encryption.
- Verified findings and compensating controls support the documented residual risk.
- Sample departures lose relevant access within policy limits and retain auditable evidence.
- Test evidence demonstrates authorized scope and no unauthorized production disruption.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Test evidence demonstrates authorized scope and no unauthorized production disruption. It addresses security testing tools and techniques. Underlying audit concern: Security testing must have approved scope, safe methods and accountable rules of engagement.
Incorrect Answers
A:Unauthorized large plaintext exports are prevented or promptly detected despite disk encryption. 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 verification is: Test evidence demonstrates authorized scope and no unauthorized production disruption. The governing distinction is: Security testing must have approved scope, safe methods and accountable rules of engagement.
B:Verified findings and compensating controls support the documented residual risk. 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 verification is: Test evidence demonstrates authorized scope and no unauthorized production disruption. The governing distinction is: Security testing must have approved scope, safe methods and accountable rules of engagement.
C:Sample departures lose relevant access within policy limits and retain auditable evidence. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A departed finance employee's account remains enabled in a payroll application after HR termination. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Test evidence demonstrates authorized scope and no unauthorized production disruption. The governing distinction is: Security testing must have approved scope, safe methods and accountable rules of engagement.
Question 524
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: A database access audit receives a file containing only current active users although it must assess leavers over the last quarter. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Perform a documented plan refresh with the audit committee's appropriate approval.
- Corroborate privileged actions using independently controlled log sources and custody records.
- Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items.
- Expand testing or qualify the conclusion according to sampling risk and materiality.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items. The relevant control principle is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test. A meaningful follow-up should establish: Each sampled leaver can be traced from HR termination to historical account status and removal time.
Incorrect Answers
A:Perform a documented plan refresh with the audit committee's appropriate approval. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A merger adds a regulated customer database after the audit plan was approved, but the plan is treated as unchangeable. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items. The governing distinction is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test.
B:Corroborate privileged actions using independently controlled log sources and custody records. 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 recommendation is: Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items. The governing distinction is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test.
D:Expand testing or qualify the conclusion according to sampling risk and materiality. 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 recommendation is: Rebuild the population including historical departures before selecting test items. The governing distinction is: Sampling from an incomplete population invalidates the intended terminated-user control test.
Question 525
Before reaching an audit conclusion, consider: A new HR system meets its technical go-live date but fails the promised reduction in onboarding time. Which evidence should the auditor review FIRST to evaluate this risk?
- Examine initial incidents, defect trends, handover documents and user support readiness.
- Review test completion, integration dependencies, issue severity and reporting practices.
- Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience.
- Inspect threat model, data contracts, validation placement and rejected-case handling.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience. It is more reliable than assuming the claimed control state from discussion alone. The governing principle is: Post-implementation review should assess realized business outcomes as well as delivery.
Incorrect Answers
A:Examine initial incidents, defect trends, handover documents and user support readiness. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A completed software project is archived without documenting incidents and change causes from the first operating month. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience. The governing distinction is: Post-implementation review should assess realized business outcomes as well as delivery.
B:Review test completion, integration dependencies, issue severity and reporting practices. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A program steering committee receives status reports from one vendor but has no visibility into independent testing delays. In the present case, the most directly relevant audit step is: Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience. The governing distinction is: Post-implementation review should assess realized business outcomes as well as delivery.
D:Inspect threat model, data contracts, validation placement and rejected-case handling. 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 audit step is: Compare approved business case, operational metrics, costs and observed user experience. The governing distinction is: Post-implementation review should assess realized business outcomes as well as delivery.
Question 526
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A vendor's product demonstration uses sanitized sample data while the production workload needs complex legacy mappings. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- Pilot data flows reconcile successfully against real-world mapping and exception requirements.
- Representative imaging workflow meets agreed performance and data-handling requirements.
- Sample and aggregate source-to-target totals agree or documented exceptions are resolved.
- A migrated encrypted sample is accessible to authorized users and remains protected.
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:Pilot data flows reconcile successfully against real-world mapping and exception requirements. It addresses business case and feasibility analysis. Underlying audit concern: Feasibility conclusions require representative conditions and identified implementation constraints.
Incorrect Answers
B:Representative imaging workflow meets agreed performance and data-handling requirements. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A hospital chooses a cloud imaging service without confirming network reliability or clinical response needs. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Pilot data flows reconcile successfully against real-world mapping and exception requirements. The governing distinction is: Feasibility conclusions require representative conditions and identified implementation constraints.
C:Sample and aggregate source-to-target totals agree or documented exceptions are resolved. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A data migration design encrypts transfers but does not detect missing or duplicated customer records. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Pilot data flows reconcile successfully against real-world mapping and exception requirements. The governing distinction is: Feasibility conclusions require representative conditions and identified implementation constraints.
D:A migrated encrypted sample is accessible to authorized users and remains protected. 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 verification is: Pilot data flows reconcile successfully against real-world mapping and exception requirements. The governing distinction is: Feasibility conclusions require representative conditions and identified implementation constraints.
Question 527
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A remote-access gateway accepts a password alone for high-impact production administrators. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- An unauthorized password-only login to privileged remote access is rejected.
- A test user cannot complete both conflicting actions without independent authorization.
- The report links each claimed outcome to reproducible evidence and approved scope.
- A tabletop triggers authorized decisions and compliant notices within required timeframes.
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:An unauthorized password-only login to privileged remote access is rejected. It addresses identity and access management. Underlying audit concern: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
Incorrect Answers
B:A test user cannot complete both conflicting actions without independent authorization. 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 verification is: An unauthorized password-only login to privileged remote access is rejected. The governing distinction is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
C:The report links each claimed outcome to reproducible evidence and approved scope. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A red-team exercise reports success based on one simulated phishing click without demonstrating access or business impact. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: An unauthorized password-only login to privileged remote access is rejected. The governing distinction is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
D:A tabletop triggers authorized decisions and compliant notices within required timeframes. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An organization discovers a reportable personal-data breach but no one knows who can authorize external notification. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: An unauthorized password-only login to privileged remote access is rejected. The governing distinction is: Strong authentication should match privileged remote access risk and enterprise policy.
Question 528
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A ransomware incident plan focuses on restoring files but omits containment of compromised privileged identities. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- A tabletop triggers authorized decisions and compliant notices within required timeframes.
- Restored services operate without active malicious access or unaddressed persistence.
- Verified findings and compensating controls support the documented residual risk.
- Connections to an untrusted endpoint fail while approved processor sessions work.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Restored services operate without active malicious access or unaddressed persistence. It addresses security incident response management. Underlying audit concern: Incident response must coordinate containment, eradication, restoration and business decision-making.
Incorrect Answers
A:A tabletop triggers authorized decisions and compliant notices within required timeframes. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An organization discovers a reportable personal-data breach but no one knows who can authorize external notification. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Restored services operate without active malicious access or unaddressed persistence. The governing distinction is: Incident response must coordinate containment, eradication, restoration and business decision-making.
C:Verified findings and compensating controls support the documented residual risk. 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 verification is: Restored services operate without active malicious access or unaddressed persistence. The governing distinction is: Incident response must coordinate containment, eradication, restoration and business decision-making.
D:Connections to an untrusted endpoint fail while approved processor sessions work. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: An application uses TLS for client sessions but disables certificate validation when connecting to its payment processor. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Restored services operate without active malicious access or unaddressed persistence. The governing distinction is: Incident response must coordinate containment, eradication, restoration and business decision-making.
Question 529
Management reports that this issue has been corrected: A threat-intelligence feed generates blocks for obsolete indicators without regular relevance review. Which result would provide the STRONGEST assurance that the issue is corrected?
- An unauthorized password-only login to privileged remote access is rejected.
- Expired indicators are retired and material active threats remain detectable.
- A safe combined test creates a prioritized alert with adequate investigation context.
- Permitted application transactions work while direct unauthorized client access is denied.
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Expired indicators are retired and material active threats remain detectable. It addresses security monitoring tools and techniques. Underlying audit concern: Threat monitoring should assess indicator freshness, context and false-positive effects.
Incorrect Answers
A:An unauthorized password-only login to privileged remote access is rejected. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A remote-access gateway accepts a password alone for high-impact production administrators. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Expired indicators are retired and material active threats remain detectable. The governing distinction is: Threat monitoring should assess indicator freshness, context and false-positive effects.
C:A safe combined test creates a prioritized alert with adequate investigation context. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A SOC receives repeated login alerts but does not correlate them with high-value account privilege changes. In the present case, the most directly relevant verification is: Expired indicators are retired and material active threats remain detectable. The governing distinction is: Threat monitoring should assess indicator freshness, context and false-positive effects.
D:Permitted application transactions work while direct unauthorized client access is denied. 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 verification is: Expired indicators are retired and material active threats remain detectable. The governing distinction is: Threat monitoring should assess indicator freshness, context and false-positive effects.
Question 530
An IS auditor is preparing recommendations after reviewing this situation: Operations declares an incident resolved because a server restarted, although business transactions remain stuck. Which recommendation would BEST address the identified weakness?
- Recommend an accurate component dependency inventory and risk review of single points of failure.
- Recommend protected incident evidence retention and audited deletion rules.
- Recommend tested alternate operator coverage and controlled emergency access.
- Recommend end-to-end business recovery criteria before incident closure.
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Recommend end-to-end business recovery criteria before incident closure. The relevant control principle is: Incident closure should confirm restoration of the affected business service, not just infrastructure state. A meaningful follow-up should establish: A sample transaction completes correctly and accountable users confirm recovery.
Incorrect Answers
A:Recommend an accurate component dependency inventory and risk review of single points of failure. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A payment service uses a load balancer, two application servers and one database but its diagram lists only the web servers as critical. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend end-to-end business recovery criteria before incident closure. The governing distinction is: Incident closure should confirm restoration of the affected business service, not just infrastructure state.
B: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 end-to-end business recovery criteria before incident closure. The governing distinction is: Incident closure should confirm restoration of the affected business service, not just infrastructure state.
C:Recommend tested alternate operator coverage and controlled emergency access. This would be relevant to a different issue such as: A highly available application uses only one privileged administrator who is unavailable during a holiday. In the present case, the most directly relevant recommendation is: Recommend end-to-end business recovery criteria before incident closure. The governing distinction is: Incident closure should confirm restoration of the affected business service, not just infrastructure state.