hardMultiple Choice
CISA Practice Question: Has outsourced its IT help desk to a third-party…
An organization has outsourced its IT help desk to a third-party provider. Which of the following is the MOST critical control to ensure service quality?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse operational or security controls (background checks, system access, meetings) with the contractual governance control (SLA) that directly enforces and measures service quality, leading them to pick a plausible but less critical option.
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
✓
Service level agreement (SLA) with key performance indicators
A Service Level Agreement (SLA) with key performance indicators (KPIs) is the most critical control because it defines measurable targets (e.g., average speed to answer, first-call resolution rate, ticket closure time) and establishes contractual remedies for non-compliance. Without an SLA, the organization has no enforceable mechanism to hold the provider accountable for service quality, making it the foundational control for outsourced IT help desk governance.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Regular background checks on provider employees
Why it's wrong here
Background checks address personnel integrity and confidentiality risk, not whether the help desk resolves incidents within agreed service levels. They tempt because vetting sounds like strong due diligence, and they would be the correct choice where the concern is insider threat or data protection rather than service quality measurement.
- ✗
Access to provider's incident management system
Why it's wrong here
Read access to the provider's incident system gives visibility of tickets but no contractual obligation or independent verification of resolution quality. It tempts because live data feels authoritative, and it would be the correct choice when the organisation needs operational oversight of individual incidents rather than assurance of overall service performance.
- ✗
Monthly meetings with provider management
Why it's wrong here
Meetings discuss performance but generate no measurable evidence of service quality; service level agreements with defined metrics and reporting provide the enforceable control. Meetings tempt because governance contact feels reassuring, and they would be the right choice for relationship management or escalation, not for verifying service delivery.
- ✓
Service level agreement (SLA) with key performance indicators
Why this is correct
An SLA with key performance indicators defines measurable service targets, such as response and resolution times, against which the outsourced provider's performance is monitored. This satisfies the stem's requirement to ensure service quality, since without measurable KPIs the organisation cannot objectively verify or enforce the provider's obligations.
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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.