mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
CRISC Practice Question: A company recently experienced a data breach due…
A company recently experienced a data breach due to an unpatched vulnerability in a public-facing web application. During the post-incident review, the IT risk manager notes that the vulnerability was identified by the vulnerability scanner six months ago but was not remediated because the patch required a critical database server restart. Which of the following is the BEST risk treatment decision to prevent a recurrence?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse risk acceptance (Option D) with a valid treatment when the vulnerability has already been exploited, failing to recognize that a compensating control like a WAF is the only option that actively reduces risk without causing the operational disruption that prevented patching.
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
✓
Implement a compensating control such as a web application firewall.
Implementing a web application firewall (WAF) as a compensating control provides virtual patching, blocking exploitation attempts at the application layer (e.g., SQL injection, path traversal) without requiring a database server restart. This directly addresses the root cause—the unpatched vulnerability—while avoiding the operational disruption that prevented the patch from being applied. A WAF can inspect HTTP/HTTPS traffic and filter malicious payloads based on signatures or behavioral rules, effectively reducing risk to an acceptable level until the next maintenance window.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Ignore the vulnerability until the next maintenance window.
Why it's wrong here
Ignoring would leave the system exposed.
- ✗
Escalate the risk to senior management for acceptance.
Why it's wrong here
Escalation without treatment action would not remediate the vulnerability.
- ✓
Implement a compensating control such as a web application firewall.
Why this is correct
A WAF can block exploitation attempts until a proper patch can be applied.
- ✗
Accept the risk based on the low likelihood of exploitation.
Why it's wrong here
The likelihood is not low since exploitation occurred.
Visual reference
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
This CRISC question is part of Courseiva's 983-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam 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 CRISC 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 CRISC exam.