mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
CISM Practice Question: During an incident investigation, the team…
During an incident investigation, the team discovers that a compromised account was used to exfiltrate data. Which of the following should the team do NEXT?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse 'immediate containment' with 'immediate password reset or account deletion,' failing to recognize that the first step must be forensic analysis to understand the full impact before taking irreversible actions.
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
✓
Determine the scope of the breach by analyzing accessed resources.
The immediate priority after discovering a compromised account is to determine the scope of the breach by analyzing which resources the account accessed. This involves reviewing authentication logs, file access records, and data transfer logs to identify the extent of data exfiltration and potential lateral movement. Without this analysis, the team cannot contain the incident effectively or understand what data was compromised, which is a fundamental step in incident response per NIST SP 800-61.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Determine the scope of the breach by analyzing accessed resources.
Why this is correct
Correct. Determining the scope by analyzing accessed resources is the next step to understand the extent of data exfiltration and potential lateral movement, enabling effective containment.
- ✗
Reset the password and re-enable the account immediately.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Immediately resetting the password and re-enabling the account could destroy forensic evidence and does not address the root cause or scope of the breach.
- ✗
Notify the affected users and customers.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Notifying affected parties before understanding the scope can cause unnecessary panic and may be inaccurate; this step comes after containment and analysis.
- ✗
Delete the compromised account from the system.
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Deleting the account eliminates evidence needed for investigation and does not prevent potential lateral movement; forensic preservation is key.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every CISM question from scratch — 871 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or 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.