CISA Governance and Management of IT Practice Question
During a risk assessment, an IS auditor identifies that the IT department has not performed a business impact analysis (BIA) for critical systems. Which of the following is the MOST significant risk?
⚠ Common exam trap
CISA often tests the misconception that a BIA is primarily about security or compliance, when its core purpose is to determine recovery objectives and business impact.
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
✓
Uncertainty regarding recovery time objectives for critical systems
A business impact analysis (BIA) is essential for identifying critical business functions and determining recovery time objectives (RTOs) and recovery point objectives (RPOs). Without a BIA, the organization lacks a clear understanding of how long systems can be down and what data loss is acceptable, leading to uncertainty in recovery planning. This is the most significant risk because it directly affects the ability to recover from disruptions.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Non-compliance with software licensing
Why it's wrong here
Software licensing compliance depends on entitlements, deployment counts and audit records, which a BIA neither generates nor verifies. It is tempting because a BIA documents system criticality, but licensing breaches stem from unmanaged installations and expired agreements, so omitting the BIA does not alter licence positions.
- ✗
Increased likelihood of security breaches
Why it's wrong here
A missing BIA leaves recovery priorities and maximum tolerable downtime undefined; it does not itself weaken authentication, patching or monitoring, so breach likelihood is unchanged. The temptation is that BIAs feed risk registers, but the concrete loss is unquantified impact and untested recovery objectives, not new attack vectors.
- ✗
Inability to calculate total cost of ownership
Why it's wrong here
Total cost of ownership is derived from asset inventories, licensing and support contracts, none of which a BIA produces. The appeal is that a BIA quantifies financial impact, but it measures downtime and recovery costs per process, not acquisition and operating costs across the estate, so TCO remains calculable without it.
- ✓
Uncertainty regarding recovery time objectives for critical systems
Why this is correct
Without a BIA, the organisation cannot determine maximum tolerable downtime or derive recovery time objectives for critical systems. That gap leaves recovery priorities and continuity requirements undefined, making uncertainty over RTOs the most significant risk identified.
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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
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