easyMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
CISM Practice Question: During incident investigation, which evidence…
During incident investigation, which evidence preservation method is most important?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse the order of volatility (where memory is captured first) with the most important method for long-term evidence preservation, leading them to choose memory capture (option D) over forensic imaging, which is the foundational step for reconstructing the incident timeline and recovering deleted artifacts.
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
✓
Create a forensic image of affected drives
Creating a forensic image of affected drives (option C) is the most important evidence preservation method because it captures a bit-for-bit copy of the storage media, including deleted files, slack space, and unallocated clusters, without altering the original evidence. This ensures data integrity and admissibility in legal proceedings, as the image can be hashed (e.g., using SHA-256) and verified against the original. In incident response, the order of volatility dictates that persistent storage is preserved after volatile memory, but for long-term analysis, the forensic image is the gold standard.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Take screenshots of the attack
Why it's wrong here
Screenshots are not forensically sound and may miss underlying data.
- ✗
Interview witnesses immediately
Why it's wrong here
Interviews are important but not the primary method of evidence preservation.
- ✓
Create a forensic image of affected drives
Why this is correct
Correct: Forensic imaging preserves the exact state for analysis.
- ✗
Reboot the system to capture memory
Why it's wrong here
Rebooting can destroy volatile evidence and alter data.
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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.