CISM Information Security Programme Practice Question
An organization's third-party risk management program has been in place for two years. Which of the following is the MOST critical action to ensure the program remains effective?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse 'maintaining a list' (a static, necessary but insufficient step) with the active, risk-driven monitoring required to keep the program effective over time.
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
✓
Implementing continuous monitoring of high-risk vendors
Continuous monitoring of high-risk vendors is the most critical action because it provides real-time or near-real-time visibility into security posture changes, such as new vulnerabilities, configuration drifts, or breach indicators, which static annual assessments cannot catch. This aligns with the NIST SP 800-137 framework for continuous monitoring and is essential for adapting to evolving threats in a third-party ecosystem.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Conducting a one-time risk assessment before contract signing
Why it's wrong here
A one-time pre-contract assessment cannot sustain a two-year programme, because third-party risk changes as vendors, subprocessors and their controls evolve. Continuous monitoring and periodic reassessment are required. It is tempting because pre-contract due diligence is genuinely correct when onboarding a new supplier, where a point-in-time assessment establishes the initial risk baseline before signing.
- ✗
Performing annual reassessments for all vendors
Why it's wrong here
Annual reassessments leave exposure unmanaged between cycles, whereas continuous monitoring detects control drift, new subprocessors and breach notifications as they occur. Reassessment suits stable, low-risk vendors under periodic review. The stem's two-year-old program implies established vendors whose risk posture changes continuously, so a fixed annual cadence cannot satisfy the ongoing-effectiveness requirement.
- ✗
Maintaining a list of all vendors and their criticality
Why it's wrong here
Maintaining a vendor inventory with criticality ratings is foundational onboarding work, already completed after two years; it does not test whether controls still match current risk. It is tempting because accurate criticality tiers drive due diligence depth, and it would be the correct choice when initially scoping a new third-party risk programme.
- ✓
Implementing continuous monitoring of high-risk vendors
Why this is correct
Continuous monitoring detects vendor risk posture changes between periodic reassessments, satisfying the need to keep the two-year-old programme effective as threats and vendor relationships evolve. Point-in-time reviews alone leave gaps that high-risk vendors could exploit undetected.
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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.