The answer is to review the change management records for the firewall. This is the correct first step in a misconfiguration investigation because the logs show dropped packets without any known policy changes, meaning the root cause could be an undocumented or unauthorized alteration to the rule set. By checking change management records first, you establish a baseline of what was actually modified, ruling out human error or unapproved changes before diving into technical troubleshooting. On the CRISC exam, this tests your understanding of risk management’s foundational principle: always verify process controls before technical controls, as jumping to block IP ranges or run a penetration test wastes resources and may introduce new risks. A common trap is to assume the firewall itself is faulty, but the exam emphasizes that change management is the first line of defense against misconfiguration. Memory tip: “Check the log, then check the change log.”
CRISC IT Risk Assessment Practice Question
This CRISC practice question tests your understanding of it risk assessment. Examine the command output carefully: the correct answer depends on what the output actually shows, not on general recall alone. 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.
During a risk assessment, a risk manager is evaluating the effectiveness of a firewall rule set. The manager notes that the firewall logs show a high number of dropped packets from a specific IP range, but no policy changes have been made. The manager suspects the firewall rule set may be misconfigured. Which of the following should the manager do FIRST?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Review the change management records for the firewall.
Option C is correct because the first step when a misconfiguration is suspected without any known policy changes is to verify the change management records. This ensures that any recent modifications to the firewall rule set are accounted for, ruling out unauthorized or undocumented changes before proceeding with more invasive actions like penetration testing or blocking IP ranges.
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.
✗
Conduct a penetration test on the firewall.
Why it's wrong here
Pen testing is a later step after understanding the situation.
✗
Immediately block the IP range.
Why it's wrong here
Blocking without investigation may disrupt legitimate traffic.
✓
Review the change management records for the firewall.
Why this is correct
Change records can reveal if unauthorized or incorrect changes were made.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "first" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Update the risk register with a new risk.
Why it's wrong here
Updating the risk register should come after understanding the root cause.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often jump to immediate remediation (blocking the IP range) or escalation (updating the risk register) without first investigating the root cause through change management records, which is the foundational step in IT risk assessment.
Trap categories for this question
Scenario analysis trap
Pen testing is a later step after understanding the situation.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Firewall rule sets are typically managed through a change control process that logs every modification, including rule additions, deletions, or reordering. The high number of dropped packets from a specific IP range could indicate a rule that is too restrictive or an implicit deny rule that is misordered; reviewing change management records helps identify if a recent change inadvertently caused the issue. In real-world scenarios, such as with Cisco ASA or Palo Alto firewalls, the 'show change-history' or 'show configuration sessions' commands can be used to trace recent changes, but the change management records provide the authoritative audit trail.
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 practitioner preparing for the CRISC exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
IT Risk Assessment — This question tests IT Risk Assessment — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Review the change management records for the firewall. — Option C is correct because the first step when a misconfiguration is suspected without any known policy changes is to verify the change management records. This ensures that any recent modifications to the firewall rule set are accounted for, ruling out unauthorized or undocumented changes before proceeding with more invasive actions like penetration testing or blocking IP ranges.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "first". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. During a risk assessment, a financial institution identifies that its online banking application uses an outdated encryption protocol. The likelihood of exploitation is high, and the impact is moderate. What should the risk owner do FIRST?
medium
A.Implement a compensating control to mitigate the risk
✓ B.Validate the risk rating with additional data
C.Transfer the risk via cyber insurance
D.Accept the risk as low priority
Why B: The risk owner's first responsibility is to ensure the risk assessment is accurate before deciding on a response. Validating the risk rating with additional data (option B) confirms that the high likelihood and moderate impact are correctly assessed, which is a prerequisite for selecting an appropriate treatment. Jumping to implement controls, transfer, or accept the risk without validation could lead to misallocation of resources or inadequate mitigation.
Last reviewed: Jun 25, 2026
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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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