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CRISC Practice Question: An external audit finds that a control is not…
An external audit finds that a control is not operating as designed. The auditor recommends corrective action. What should the risk practitioner do FIRST?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse the urgency of an audit finding with the need for immediate action, when the correct first step is always to evaluate the risk impact before any remediation or reporting.
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
✓
Assess the impact of the control deficiency on residual risk
The risk practitioner must first assess the impact of the control deficiency on residual risk because the finding may not represent a material risk to the organization. Without understanding the severity and likelihood of the risk, any remediation or reporting could be misprioritized. This aligns with the CRISC framework's emphasis on risk-based decision-making before action.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Implement the auditor's recommendation immediately
Why it's wrong here
May not be feasible or cost-effective without analysis.
- ✗
Develop a remediation plan with the control owner
Why it's wrong here
Remediation plan comes after impact and root cause analysis.
- ✗
Update the risk register with the auditor's finding
Why it's wrong here
Update after impact assessment.
- ✓
Assess the impact of the control deficiency on residual risk
Why this is correct
Understanding impact drives prioritization.
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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.