Isaca Updated CRISC Exam Questions and Answers by miriam

Residual risk is the level of risk that remains after applying controls or other risk treatments. A critical patch is a type of control that aims to reduce the risk of a known vulnerability being exploited by attackers. If the patch implementation fails, the control is ineffective and the risk is not reduced. Therefore, the residual risk is increased, as the organization is still exposed to the potential negative consequences of the vulnerability.

The most important objective from a cost perspective for considering aggregated risk responses in an organization is to address more than one risk response. Aggregated risk responses are risk responses that can affect multiple risks or objectives simultaneously. By addressing more than one risk response, the organization can achieve cost efficiency and effectiveness in risk management. Prioritizing risk response options, reducing likelihood, and reducing impact are other possible objectives, but they are not as important from a cost perspective as addressing more than one risk response. References = ISACA Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC) Certification Exam Question and Answers, question 10; CRISC Review Manual, 6th Edition, page 140.

A business case will BEST communicate the importance of risk mitigation initiatives to senior management, because it provides a clear and concise justification of the objectives, benefits, costs, and risks of the proposed initiatives. A business case helps to align the risk mitigation initiatives with the enterprise’s strategy and goals, and to obtain the necessary approval and support from senior management. The other options are not as effective as a business case, because:

Option B: A balanced scorecard is a tool to measure and monitor the performance of the enterprise across four perspectives: financial, customer, internal process, and learning and growth. It does not communicate the importance of risk mitigation initiatives, but rather the outcomes and impacts of them.

Option C: Industry standards are benchmarks or best practices that define the minimum requirements or expectations for a certain domain or activity. They do not communicate the importance of risk mitigation initiatives, but rather the compliance or alignment of them with the external environment.

Option D: A heat map is a tool to visualize and prioritize the risks based on their likelihood and impact. It does not communicate the importance of risk mitigation initiatives, but rather the severity and distribution of the risks. References = Risk and Information Systems Control Study Manual, 7th Edition, ISACA, 2020, p. 118.

 IT asset inventory is the process of tracking and managing the financial, physical, licensing, and contractual aspects of IT assets throughout their life cycle1. IT assets include hardware, software, and network components that an organization values and uses to achieve its objectives2. A complete and accurate IT asset inventory can help an organization to optimize its IT budget, reduce security risks, ensure compliance, and improve performance3.

One of the best controls to enable an organization to ensure a complete and accurate IT asset inventory is performing network scanning for unknown devices. Network scanning is the process of identifying and collecting information about the devices connected to a network, such as their IP addresses, operating systems, open ports, services, and vulnerabilities4. Network scanning can help an organization to:

Discover and inventory all the IT assets on the network, including those that are unauthorized, unmanaged, or hidden

Detect and remove any rogue or malicious devices that may pose a threat to the network security or performance

Update and verify the asset inventory data regularly and automatically, and alert on any changes or discrepancies

Support the asset lifecycle management and maintenance activities, such as patching, upgrading, or retiring assets5

References = IT Asset Valuation, Risk Assessment and Control Implementation Model, ITAM: The ultimate guide to IT asset management, Navigating Security Threats with IT Inventory Management, Network Scanning - Wikipedia, 8 Best IT Asset Management Software (2024)