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CISM Practice Question: Which THREE elements should be included in an…
Which THREE elements should be included in an incident response plan to ensure effective communication during a security incident?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse operational data (like affected systems) with communication plan elements, or they mistakenly think a full public relations strategy must be embedded in the IR plan rather than referenced as a separate document.
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
✓
Escalation procedures for notifying management and legal
Escalation procedures define the specific thresholds and contact paths for notifying management and legal teams when an incident exceeds predefined severity levels. This ensures that decision-makers are informed promptly to authorize critical actions like legal holds or regulatory notifications, preventing delays that could worsen the incident's impact.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Escalation procedures for notifying management and legal
Why this is correct
Escalation ensures timely involvement of decision-makers.
- ✓
Communication protocols and channels for internal coordination
Why this is correct
Protocols ensure efficient information sharing.
- ✗
List of affected systems and data
Why it's wrong here
This is incident-specific, not a planned element.
- ✗
Public relations strategy for external communication
Why it's wrong here
PR is important but not a core communication element of the plan.
- ✓
Defined roles and responsibilities for the incident response team
Why this is correct
Roles ensure clear ownership of tasks.
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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.