CRISC IT Risk Assessment Practice Question
In a qualitative risk assessment using a 5x5 heat map, an IT risk is rated with likelihood 4 and impact 5. According to typical heat map conventions (5=Critical, 4=High, 3=Medium, 2=Low, 1=Informational), what is the overall risk rating?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates may incorrectly multiply likelihood and impact (4 x 5 = 20) and then try to map that product to a rating, rather than using the heat map's intersection logic, leading them to choose 'High' instead of 'Critical'.
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
✓
Critical
In a typical 5x5 risk heat map, the overall risk rating is determined by the intersection of likelihood and impact values. With likelihood 4 and impact 5, the cell falls in the 'Critical' zone (commonly defined as likelihood 4-5 and impact 4-5). This aligns with the convention where 5=Critical, 4=High, 3=Medium, 2=Low, 1=Informational, making D the correct answer.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Low
Why it's wrong here
Low would correspond to lower scores (e.g., 1-4).
- ✗
Medium
Why it's wrong here
Medium typically covers scores around 5-9.
- ✗
High
Why it's wrong here
High may cover 10-14, but 20 is Critical.
- ✓
Critical
Why this is correct
Correct. 4x5=20 is in the critical range (15-25).
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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.