PK0-005 Project Life Cycle Practice Question
Which risk response strategy involves taking action to reduce the probability or impact of a risk?
⚠ Common exam trap
PK0-005 often tests the subtle difference between mitigating and avoiding a risk—candidates may pick 'avoid' thinking it means reducing impact, but avoidance removes the risk entirely by changing the plan.
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
✓
Mitigate
Mitigate is the risk response strategy that focuses on reducing either the likelihood or the impact of a risk. In project management (e.g., PMBOK), mitigation involves proactive actions such as implementing additional testing, using redundant components, or providing training to lower the chance of a risk occurring or to lessen its consequences if it does. This is distinct from other strategies that change the risk's probability/impact by other means, such as avoiding the risk entirely or shifting it to a third party.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Accept
Why it's wrong here
Acceptance acknowledges a risk and monitors it without changing either its likelihood or its effect, so no mitigating action is taken. It tempts when the exposure sits within tolerance or the cost of treatment exceeds the potential loss, making acceptance a deliberate, documented choice rather than neglect.
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Avoid
Why it's wrong here
Avoidance eliminates the risk by removing the activity or asset that creates it, altering scope rather than reducing probability or impact. It tempts when exposure is unacceptable and the underlying process can simply be discontinued, but it is a different strategy from mitigating an ongoing risk.
- ✓
Mitigate
Why this is correct
Correct: mitigation reduces probability or impact.
- ✗
Transfer
Why it's wrong here
Transfer shifts the financial consequence to a third party, typically through insurance or contractual indemnity, leaving the probability and technical impact unchanged. It tempts for low-frequency, high-severity exposures where a premium is cheaper than controls, but the risk itself still occurs.
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
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