The answer is implementing a multi-cloud strategy with active-active deployment. This is correct because an active-active configuration distributes workloads across multiple cloud providers simultaneously, ensuring that if one provider suffers a regional outage, traffic is instantly rerouted to the other, eliminating single points of failure and maintaining continuous availability. On the CISA exam, this question tests your understanding of business continuity and disaster recovery controls, specifically how to architect for resilience beyond a single provider’s SLA. A common trap is mistaking financial compensation (like service credits) for actual uptime protection, or assuming that scaling within one cloud can survive a regional failure. Remember the mnemonic “MAP” for resilience: Multi-cloud, Active-active, Provider-independent—this directly counters the risk of a single cloud’s regional outage.
CISA Practice Question: Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience
This CISA practice question tests your understanding of information systems operations and business resilience. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A small e-commerce company uses a cloud-based e-commerce platform with automatic scaling. The company's business continuity plan relies on the cloud provider's promise of 99.99% uptime. During a regional outage affecting the cloud provider's primary availability zone, the company's website became unavailable for 2 hours, resulting in lost sales. The IT manager wants to improve resilience. Which of the following is the BEST action?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Clue: "primary"
Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Implement a multi-cloud strategy with active-active deployment.
Option B is correct because deploying across multiple cloud providers (multi-cloud) with active-active configuration can withstand a single provider's regional outage. Option A only improves compensation, not availability. Option C is less scalable and may not integrate well. Option D helps with scaling but not with provider failure.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Maintain a secondary on-premises server for failover.
Why it's wrong here
On-premises may be costly and complex; not the best for a small e-commerce cloud-native setup.
✗
Increase the reserved capacity in the cloud to handle spikes.
Why it's wrong here
This addresses capacity but does not protect against a regional outage affecting the entire provider.
✗
Negotiate a higher service-level agreement (SLA) with the provider.
Why it's wrong here
A higher SLA provides financial compensation but does not improve technical resilience.
✓
Implement a multi-cloud strategy with active-active deployment.
Why this is correct
Multi-cloud reduces dependency on a single provider and improves availability.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "best", "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A practitioner preparing for the CISA exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which CISA exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience — This question tests Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Implement a multi-cloud strategy with active-active deployment. — Option B is correct because deploying across multiple cloud providers (multi-cloud) with active-active configuration can withstand a single provider's regional outage. Option A only improves compensation, not availability. Option C is less scalable and may not integrate well. Option D helps with scaling but not with provider failure.
What should I do if I get this CISA question wrong?
Identify which CISA exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best", "primary". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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