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CISA Practice Question: Has implemented a database activity monitoring…
An organization has implemented a database activity monitoring (DAM) solution. Which of the following are BEST practices for tuning the DAM to reduce false positives? (Choose TWO.)
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often think increasing sensitivity (Option C) improves detection, but it actually amplifies false positives, whereas the correct approach is to establish a baseline (Option E) and exclude known benign activities (Option A).
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
✓
Implement exclusions for routine maintenance activities
Implementing exclusions for routine maintenance activities (Option A) is a best practice because these activities often generate predictable database queries that are not indicative of security threats. By excluding them, the DAM solution avoids alerting on benign operations, thereby reducing false positives without compromising security coverage.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Implement exclusions for routine maintenance activities
Why this is correct
Excluding known safe activities reduces false positives.
- ✗
Enable alerts for all database queries
Why it's wrong here
This would cause too many false positives.
- ✗
Increase the sensitivity of all detection rules
Why it's wrong here
Higher sensitivity may increase false positives.
- ✗
Review alerts in real-time only
Why it's wrong here
Real-time review does not tune the system to reduce false positives.
- ✓
Define a baseline of normal user behavior
Why this is correct
Baselining helps distinguish abnormal from normal activity.
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JA
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.