mediumMultiple Choice
CISM Practice Question: According to the exhibit, which role is…
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit. [Incident Response Plan Roles] Role: Incident Manager - Coordinates response Role: Technical Lead - Performs analysis Role: Communication Lead - Handles communications Role: Legal Counsel - Provides legal guidance
According to the exhibit, which role is responsible for conducting forensic analysis?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse the Incident Manager's overall authority with the hands-on technical execution, assuming the manager performs all tasks, when in fact the Technical Lead is the specific role for forensic analysis in a structured incident response team.
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
✓
Technical Lead
The Technical Lead is responsible for conducting forensic analysis because they possess the deep technical expertise required to preserve, acquire, and examine digital evidence without altering its integrity. In incident response, the Technical Lead oversees the technical team, ensuring that chain-of-custody procedures are followed and that forensic tools (e.g., FTK Imager, EnCase, or dd for disk imaging) are correctly applied to capture volatile and non-volatile data.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Incident Manager
Why it's wrong here
The incident manager coordinates response, communication and escalation, not evidence collection or technical examination. That role suits orchestrating containment and recovery across teams; forensic analysis demands specialist investigators who preserve chain of custody and examine artefacts.
- ✓
Technical Lead
Why this is correct
The Technical Lead conducts the forensic analysis, gathering and examining evidence to determine how the incident occurred. This role owns the hands-on investigation, distinguishing it from the Incident Response Manager, who coordinates, and the Communications Lead, who handles messaging.
- ✗
Legal Counsel
Why it's wrong here
Legal counsel interprets obligations, preserves privilege and advises on disclosure, but does not perform technical evidence acquisition or examination. That role suits regulatory and contractual guidance during incidents; forensic analysis requires trained investigators handling chain of custody and artefact examination.
- ✗
Communication Lead
Why it's wrong here
Forensic analysis requires evidence-handling and investigative expertise, which the Communication Lead's remit of stakeholder messaging and breach notification does not include. It is tempting because that role coordinates incident information flows, and would be correct where the scenario asked who drafts external communications during incident response.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CISM 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 CISM exam.