The answer is a lack of individual accountability for privileged actions. This control weakness arises when a shared default administrator account, such as 'root' or 'admin', is used by multiple users without a secondary approval mechanism, making it impossible to trace specific commands or configuration changes back to a single person. On the Certified Information Systems Auditor CISA exam, this scenario tests your understanding of non-repudiation and the principle that privileged access must be uniquely assigned to enforce accountability. A common trap is to focus on password strength or session timeouts, but the core issue is the absence of unique user IDs, which prevents forensic investigation of who performed a critical action. Remember the mnemonic: "Shared admin, no blame; unique IDs, real names."
CISA Information System Auditing Process Practice Question
This CISA practice question tests your understanding of information system auditing process. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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.
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit.
Audit Finding Report Excerpt:
Finding ID: F-001
Control: User Account Management
Observation: Review of Active Directory logs from 01-Mar-2024 to 07-Mar-2024 revealed that the default administrator account (Administrator) was used to perform 45% of all privileged actions. No evidence of secondary approval or time-based restrictions.
Configuration snippet from domain controller:
Set-ADUser -Identity Administrator -PasswordNeverExpires $true
Set-ADUser -Identity Administrator -CannotChangePassword $true
Audit Recommendation: Implement a privileged access management (PAM) solution and enforce use of individual privileged accounts.
Based on the exhibit, what is the most likely control weakness that allowed this condition?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Refer to the exhibit.
Audit Finding Report Excerpt:
Finding ID: F-001
Control: User Account Management
Observation: Review of Active Directory logs from 01-Mar-2024 to 07-Mar-2024 revealed that the default administrator account (Administrator) was used to perform 45% of all privileged actions. No evidence of secondary approval or time-based restrictions.
Configuration snippet from domain controller:
Set-ADUser -Identity Administrator -PasswordNeverExpires $true
Set-ADUser -Identity Administrator -CannotChangePassword $true
Audit Recommendation: Implement a privileged access management (PAM) solution and enforce use of individual privileged accounts.
A
Weak password complexity requirements
Why wrong: Incorrect: The finding shows PasswordNeverExpires, but complexity is not mentioned; the core issue is shared use.
B
Lack of individual accountability for privileged actions
Correct: Using a shared default account prevents attribution of actions to individuals.
C
Failure to disable the default administrator account
Why wrong: Incorrect: Disabling the account is not required; the issue is shared use without controls.
D
Inadequate segregation of duties between IT and security teams
Why wrong: Incorrect: The finding does not address segregation of duties between teams.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Lack of individual accountability for privileged actions
The exhibit shows that multiple users are sharing a single privileged account (e.g., 'root' or 'admin') to perform administrative actions. Without unique user IDs for each administrator, it is impossible to map specific actions (e.g., a 'sudo' command or a configuration change) back to an individual. This lack of individual accountability is the core control weakness, as it violates the audit principle of non-repudiation and prevents effective forensic investigation.
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.
✗
Weak password complexity requirements
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: The finding shows PasswordNeverExpires, but complexity is not mentioned; the core issue is shared use.
✓
Lack of individual accountability for privileged actions
Why this is correct
Correct: Using a shared default account prevents attribution of actions to individuals.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Failure to disable the default administrator account
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: Disabling the account is not required; the issue is shared use without controls.
✗
Inadequate segregation of duties between IT and security teams
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: The finding does not address segregation of duties between teams.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse 'shared accounts' with 'default accounts' (Option C) or 'weak passwords' (Option A), but the exhibit's key indicator is multiple users logging in with the same non-default privileged account, which directly points to a lack of individual accountability.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
Incorrect: The finding shows PasswordNeverExpires, but complexity is not mentioned; the core issue is shared use.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In Unix/Linux environments, individual accountability is enforced by requiring each admin to use their own account with 'sudo' (e.g., 'sudo -u root command'), which logs the real user ID (UID) in '/var/log/auth.log' or via 'auditd'. In Windows, this is achieved through 'Run as administrator' with separate domain accounts, logging the security identifier (SID) in the Security Event Log (Event ID 4672). Without this, shared accounts like 'root' or 'Administrator' produce logs that only show the shared username, making attribution impossible. A real-world scenario is the 2013 Target breach, where shared vendor credentials allowed lateral movement without individual audit trails.
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 junior network technician can log in to a core router but cannot reach the enable prompt or configuration mode. The AAA server is authenticating the login — but the authorisation policy only grants privilege level 1, not 15. Authentication (who you are) is working; authorisation (what you can do) is not.
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.
Information System Auditing Process — This question tests Information System Auditing Process — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Lack of individual accountability for privileged actions — The exhibit shows that multiple users are sharing a single privileged account (e.g., 'root' or 'admin') to perform administrative actions. Without unique user IDs for each administrator, it is impossible to map specific actions (e.g., a 'sudo' command or a configuration change) back to an individual. This lack of individual accountability is the core control weakness, as it violates the audit principle of non-repudiation and prevents effective forensic investigation.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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