CISA Practice Question: Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience
An IS auditor is reviewing the tape backup process for a mid-sized organization. Backups run nightly and complete successfully, and tapes are stored in a fireproof safe in the same data center as the servers. Which of the following is the MOST significant finding?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is treating encryption or backup frequency as the headline issue when the dominant risk is that no copy of the data exists outside the primary facility.
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
✓
No offsite copy of the backup media is maintained.
Backup media must be stored separately from the systems they protect so that a single disaster cannot destroy both. Keeping the only copies in the same data center as the production servers concentrates availability risk and can make recovery impossible after a facility-wide event. An offsite or geographically separate copy, whether physical or replicated, is the control that ensures the organization can actually restore operations.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The fireproof safe has not been certified to a specific rating.
Why it's wrong here
Safe certification is a minor physical security detail compared with the absence of any offsite copy. Even a highly rated safe cannot protect media from a large-scale event that destroys the entire building, such as a major fire or structural collapse. The auditor should prioritize the lack of geographic separation of backup media, since that gap defeats the purpose of the backup process entirely.
- ✗
Backups are performed nightly rather than continuously.
Why it's wrong here
Nightly backups are a common and acceptable frequency for many mid-sized organizations, provided the recovery point objective is met. The scenario states the backups complete successfully, so frequency is not the primary weakness. The more serious issue is that a single incident affecting the data center could destroy both the production systems and the only copies of the backup media, making recovery impossible regardless of backup frequency.
- ✓
No offsite copy of the backup media is maintained.
Why this is correct
Storing the only backup copies in the same data center as the production servers concentrates risk. A fire, flood, or other facility-wide event would destroy both the systems and the media needed to restore them. An offsite or geographically separate copy is essential so that backups survive the loss of the primary site, which is the fundamental purpose of backing up data in the first place.
- ✗
Backup tapes are not encrypted before being placed in the safe.
Why it's wrong here
Encryption of backup media is an important confidentiality control, especially when tapes are transported or stored offsite. However, in this scenario the media never leaves the data center and the dominant risk is loss of both production and backup data in a single event. Confidentiality is a valid concern, but it does not outweigh the availability risk created by keeping the only backups in the same facility as the servers.
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Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official ISACA exam blueprint
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.