- A
Annual security awareness training
Why wrong: Training is important for security awareness but does not directly prevent fraud.
- B
Background checks on new hires
Why wrong: Background checks help screen out individuals with a history of fraud but are a preventive measure at hiring, not an ongoing control.
- C
Job rotation among IT roles
Reduces the opportunity for fraud by limiting the time any one person controls a process.
- D
Segregation of duties in IT processes
Prevents any single individual from having conflicting responsibilities, reducing fraud risk.
- E
Mandatory vacation for IT staff
Forces staff to take time off, allowing detection of fraudulent activities that require ongoing manipulation.
Question 627 of 984
hardMultiple SelectObjective-mapped
CISA Practice Question: An IS auditor is reviewing the human resources…
This CISA practice question tests your understanding of cisa exam topics. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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.
An IS auditor is reviewing the human resources practices in the IT department. Which THREE of the following controls are most effective in reducing the risk of fraud?
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
✓
Job rotation among IT roles
Job rotation (C) is effective because it prevents any single employee from maintaining exclusive control over critical IT functions over time, reducing the window for concealing fraudulent activities. By periodically rotating roles, anomalies or unauthorized actions that might otherwise go unnoticed are more likely to be detected by the incoming staff member, thereby deterring fraud.
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.
- ✗
Annual security awareness training
Why it's wrong here
Training is important for security awareness but does not directly prevent fraud.
- ✗
Background checks on new hires
Why it's wrong here
Background checks help screen out individuals with a history of fraud but are a preventive measure at hiring, not an ongoing control.
- ✓
Job rotation among IT roles
Why this is correct
Reduces the opportunity for fraud by limiting the time any one person controls a process.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✓
Segregation of duties in IT processes
Why this is correct
Prevents any single individual from having conflicting responsibilities, reducing fraud risk.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✓
Mandatory vacation for IT staff
Why this is correct
Forces staff to take time off, allowing detection of fraudulent activities that require ongoing manipulation.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often mistake background checks and training as the most direct fraud controls, overlooking that job rotation, mandatory vacation, and segregation of duties are the classic triad of fraud deterrence and detection in IT audit, as emphasized by COBIT and ISACA guidelines.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In practice, job rotation often involves cross-training staff on critical systems such as Active Directory, database administration, or network configuration management. This ensures that no single person holds exclusive knowledge of a system's 'backdoor' or undocumented procedures, and it forces documentation of processes, which itself acts as a control. For example, rotating a database administrator (DBA) role every six months can uncover unauthorized schema changes or data exports that a long-tenured DBA might have hidden.
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.
TExam Day Tips
- 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 exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this CISA question test?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Job rotation among IT roles — Job rotation (C) is effective because it prevents any single employee from maintaining exclusive control over critical IT functions over time, reducing the window for concealing fraudulent activities. By periodically rotating roles, anomalies or unauthorized actions that might otherwise go unnoticed are more likely to be detected by the incoming staff member, thereby deterring fraud.
What should I do if I get this CISA question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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.
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