CISM Incident Management Practice Question
Following a credential compromise incident, the incident response team is conducting root cause analysis using the 5 Whys technique. The first 'why' reveals that the password was weak. The second 'why' reveals that the password policy allowed simple passwords. What should be the focus of the third 'why'?
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
✓
Why the password policy allowed weak passwords
Root cause analysis should continue to identify why the password policy was not enforced or why it was inadequate, which is a process failure.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Why the password policy allowed weak passwords
Why this is correct
This leads to the process failure that allowed the weak policy.
- ✗
Why the intrusion was not detected earlier
Why it's wrong here
Detection is a separate issue.
- ✗
Why the user had access to the compromised system
Why it's wrong here
Access control is another aspect.
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Why the user chose a weak password
Why it's wrong here
This is already addressed; deeper causes involve policy and enforcement.
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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.