The answer is that an insufficient retention period is the most significant risk because it directly undermines backup retention risk compliance. When a backup policy retains critical data for only 30 days, it fails to meet regulatory requirements like GDPR, HIPAA, or SOX, which often mandate retention for months or years to support audits, litigation, and legal discovery. On the CISA exam, this question tests your understanding that backup policies must align with legal and regulatory frameworks, not just operational recovery needs. A common trap is focusing on backup frequency or encryption while overlooking retention duration, which is the core compliance driver. Remember the mnemonic “R3” for backup risk: Regulatory, Retention, and Records—if any one is short, compliance fails.
CISA Practice Question: Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience
This CISA practice question tests your understanding of information systems operations and business resilience. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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
Backup Policy "CriticalData" {
Schedule: Daily at 02:00
Retention: 30 days
Encryption: AES-256
Offsite: Enabled
}
Compliance requirement: Retain financial data for 7 years.
Refer to the exhibit. Which of the following is the most significant risk associated with the backup policy for critical data?
Backup Policy "CriticalData" {
Schedule: Daily at 02:00
Retention: 30 days
Encryption: AES-256
Offsite: Enabled
}
Compliance requirement: Retain financial data for 7 years.
A
Offsite backup storage is not configured
Why wrong: Offsite backup is enabled, so this is not a risk.
B
Retention period is insufficient to meet regulatory requirements
The policy retains backups for 30 days, but compliance requires 7 years. This is a critical gap.
C
Backup frequency is too low to meet recovery point objectives
Why wrong: Daily backups are typically sufficient for most RPOs; the main risk is retention, not frequency.
D
Encryption is not enabled for backup data
Why wrong: Encryption is enabled (AES-256), so this is not a risk.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Retention period is insufficient to meet regulatory requirements
Option B is correct because the backup policy shows a retention period of only 30 days, which is insufficient to meet common regulatory requirements such as GDPR, HIPAA, or SOX that often mandate retention of critical data for months or years. Without adequate retention, the organization risks non-compliance, legal penalties, and inability to produce historical records during audits or litigation.
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.
✗
Offsite backup storage is not configured
Why it's wrong here
Offsite backup is enabled, so this is not a risk.
✓
Retention period is insufficient to meet regulatory requirements
Why this is correct
The policy retains backups for 30 days, but compliance requires 7 years. This is a critical gap.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Backup frequency is too low to meet recovery point objectives
Why it's wrong here
Daily backups are typically sufficient for most RPOs; the main risk is retention, not frequency.
✗
Encryption is not enabled for backup data
Why it's wrong here
Encryption is enabled (AES-256), so this is not a risk.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates focus on operational risks like backup frequency or encryption, but the most significant risk is regulatory compliance failure due to insufficient retention, which can result in severe penalties and loss of business license.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Retention policies are often governed by specific regulatory frameworks: for example, HIPAA requires retention of medical records for 6 years, and PCI DSS requires audit logs to be retained for at least 1 year. A 30-day retention period would fail these mandates, exposing the organization to fines and legal action. In practice, backup solutions like Veeam or NetBackup allow granular retention settings (e.g., GFS scheme), and auditors will check for alignment with legal hold requirements.
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 practitioner preparing for the CISA exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
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 Systems Operations and Business Resilience — This question tests Information Systems Operations and Business Resilience — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Retention period is insufficient to meet regulatory requirements — Option B is correct because the backup policy shows a retention period of only 30 days, which is insufficient to meet common regulatory requirements such as GDPR, HIPAA, or SOX that often mandate retention of critical data for months or years. Without adequate retention, the organization risks non-compliance, legal penalties, and inability to produce historical records during audits or litigation.
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.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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