- A
Detective control
Why wrong: Detective controls identify incidents after they occur, not prevent them.
- B
Corrective control
Why wrong: Corrective controls remediate incidents after detection, not prevent them.
- C
Directive control
Why wrong: Directive controls guide behavior (e.g., policies) but do not physically prevent unauthorized access.
- D
Preventive control
Preventive controls stop incidents from occurring, such as access control lists.
Question 235 of 1,000
CRISC Risk Response and Reporting Practice Question
This CRISC practice question tests your understanding of risk response and reporting. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
An organization is selecting a control to prevent unauthorized access to a critical database. Which control type is most appropriate?
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
✓
Preventive control
Preventive control is the most appropriate because it directly stops unauthorized access before it occurs. For a critical database, this includes mechanisms like database firewalls, access control lists (ACLs), or mandatory access control (MAC) policies that enforce authentication and authorization at the point of entry, such as requiring valid credentials and role-based permissions before any query is processed.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Detective control
Why it's wrong here
Detective controls identify incidents after they occur, not prevent them.
- ✗
Corrective control
Why it's wrong here
Corrective controls remediate incidents after detection, not prevent them.
- ✗
Directive control
Why it's wrong here
Directive controls guide behavior (e.g., policies) but do not physically prevent unauthorized access.
- ✓
Preventive control
Why this is correct
Preventive controls stop incidents from occurring, such as access control lists.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'preventive' with 'detective' controls, mistakenly thinking that logging and monitoring (detective) are sufficient to stop unauthorized access, when in fact they only provide visibility after the fact.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, preventive controls for a database often involve implementing a database firewall that inspects SQL statements at the network layer, rejecting queries that violate predefined rules (e.g., blocking DROP TABLE statements from non-admin users). In a real-world scenario, a preventive control like multi-factor authentication (MFA) integrated with the database's authentication module (e.g., via PAM modules or Kerberos) ensures that even if credentials are stolen, the second factor prevents login. This contrasts with detective controls like database activity monitoring (DAM), which log but do not block suspicious queries.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A security administrator must allow nursing staff to reach a patient records server while blocking access from the guest Wi-Fi VLAN. After applying an extended ACL, traffic is still blocked from nursing workstations. The ACL was applied outbound instead of inbound on the wrong interface. Questions like this test ACL direction and placement rules.
Visual reference
Quick reference
Access Control Model Comparison
| Model | Acronym | Who Controls Access? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discretionary Access Control | DAC | Resource owner | Small teams, file shares |
| Mandatory Access Control | MAC | System / security labels | Classified govt / military |
| Role-Based Access Control | RBAC | Administrator (via roles) | Enterprise environments |
| Attribute-Based Access Control | ABAC | Policy engine (user + resource attributes) | Fine-grained, dynamic policies |
| Rule-Based Access Control | RuBAC | System rules / ACLs | Firewall rules, network ACLs |
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this CRISC question test?
Risk Response and Reporting — This question tests Risk Response and Reporting — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Preventive control — Preventive control is the most appropriate because it directly stops unauthorized access before it occurs. For a critical database, this includes mechanisms like database firewalls, access control lists (ACLs), or mandatory access control (MAC) policies that enforce authentication and authorization at the point of entry, such as requiring valid credentials and role-based permissions before any query is processed.
What should I do if I get this CRISC question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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.
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