CAS-004 Governance, Risk, and Compliance Practice Question
A security analyst is calculating the annualized loss expectancy (ALE) for a server that processes credit card data. The server has a $100,000 asset value, and the exposure factor for a security breach is 0.4. Historical data shows that such breaches occur twice per year. What is the ALE?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
$80,000
ALE = SLE × ARO, where SLE = AV × EF = $100,000 × 0.4 = $40,000, and ARO = 2. So ALE = $40,000 × 2 = $80,000.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
$100,000
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. That is the asset value, not ALE.
- ✗
$40,000
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. That is SLE, not ALE.
- ✓
$80,000
Why this is correct
Correct. ALE = SLE × ARO = ($100,000 × 0.4) × 2 = $80,000.
- ✗
$200,000
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. That would be AV × ARO without EF.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CAS-005 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the CAS-005 exam.