CISM Information Security Programme Practice Question
In a vendor tiering system for third-party risk management, which factor is most critical for determining the tier?
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
✓
Vendor's data access and service criticality
The vendor's access to sensitive data and the criticality of the service to business operations are the primary factors for tiering, as they directly impact risk exposure.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Vendor's data access and service criticality
Why this is correct
These determine the potential impact on the organization.
- ✗
Vendor's annual revenue
Why it's wrong here
Revenue does not directly correlate with risk.
- ✗
Vendor's geographic location
Why it's wrong here
Location may affect legal/regulatory but is secondary.
- ✗
Vendor's number of employees
Why it's wrong here
Size is not a direct risk factor.
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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.