CISA Protection of Information Assets Practice Question
An IS auditor is reviewing firewall rule sets and discovers a rule that permits any source IP to access the internal database server on TCP port 1433 (Microsoft SQL). The rule was documented as a temporary measure but has been in place for 18 months. What is the auditor's BEST course of action?
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
✓
Determine if there is a business justification for the rule and, if not, recommend removal or restriction to specific IPs
Overly permissive rules that are not justified create significant risk. The auditor should first confirm the business need and then recommend removal or tightening of the rule. If no valid justification exists, the rule should be removed.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Report the issue to senior management as a critical finding
Why it's wrong here
While reporting is important, the auditor should first verify the justification and propose a solution.
- ✗
Recommend immediate removal of the rule
Why it's wrong here
Removing without understanding the business impact may disrupt operations.
- ✗
Accept the risk as a compensating control
Why it's wrong here
Accepting risk without proper assessment and approval is not appropriate.
- ✓
Determine if there is a business justification for the rule and, if not, recommend removal or restriction to specific IPs
Why this is correct
This approach ensures that necessary access is maintained while reducing risk.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CISA practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISACA 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 CISA exam.