mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
CISM Practice Question: After a security incident, the board holds the…
After a security incident, the board holds the CISO accountable. The CISO argues that the incident was caused by a failure in the third-party risk management process. Which of the following governance deficiencies is most likely the root cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
ISACA often tests the distinction between governance (board-level policy) and management (operational implementation), so candidates mistakenly pick a visible operational failure (like a missing contract clause or technical control) instead of recognizing that the root cause is the absence of a board-approved policy that would have mandated those controls.
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
✓
There was no board-approved policy for assessing and monitoring third-party risk.
The board holds the CISO accountable because governance ultimately flows from the board's approval of policies. Without a board-approved third-party risk management policy, there is no authoritative mandate to enforce security requirements, conduct assessments, or monitor vendors. This governance gap means the organization lacks the foundational directive that drives all downstream processes, making it the most likely root cause of the incident.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
There was no board-approved policy for assessing and monitoring third-party risk.
Why this is correct
Governance requires board-level policies to define expectations and oversight.
- ✗
The third-party contract did not specify security requirements.
Why it's wrong here
This is a procurement process issue, not a board-level governance gap.
- ✗
The organization did not implement technical controls to monitor third-party access.
Why it's wrong here
This is an operational issue, not a governance deficiency.
- ✗
The incident response plan did not cover third-party related incidents.
Why it's wrong here
This is a planning issue, but the root cause is lack of governance over third-party risk.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
This CISM question is part of Courseiva's 871-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
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.