CRISC Risk Response and Reporting Practice Question
Which type of control is designed to operate before an event to prevent an undesirable outcome?
⚠ Common exam trap
In the ISACA CRISC exam, candidates often confuse preventive controls (e.g., firewalls, access controls) with detective controls (e.g., intrusion detection systems). Remember that preventive controls act before an event, while detective controls identify events that have already occurred.
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
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Preventive control
A preventive control is designed to operate before an event to stop an undesirable outcome from occurring. In risk management, this includes measures such as firewalls blocking unauthorized traffic before it reaches the internal network, or access control lists (ACLs) preventing unauthorized users from reading sensitive files. These controls proactively enforce security policies to reduce the likelihood of a risk event.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Preventive control
Why this is correct
Preventive controls are implemented to avoid the occurrence of an event.
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Detective control
Why it's wrong here
Detective controls identify incidents after they occur, such as intrusion detection systems.
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Corrective control
Why it's wrong here
Corrective controls remediate incidents after detection, such as backup restoration.
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Compensating control
Why it's wrong here
Compensating controls provide alternative measures when primary controls are not feasible.
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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.