ISC2 CC Security Operations Practice Question
A company discovers a critical vulnerability in a widely used software application. The vendor has released a patch, but the company's patch management policy requires testing before deployment. What is the best course of action?
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
✓
Apply the patch using emergency change control to critical systems first, then test and deploy to others
For critical vulnerabilities being actively exploited, emergency patching should bypass normal testing cycles to reduce risk quickly.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Apply the patch using emergency change control to critical systems first, then test and deploy to others
Why this is correct
Correct. Emergency patching prioritizes critical systems with expedited testing.
- ✗
Wait for the next scheduled maintenance window to apply the patch
Why it's wrong here
Delaying patching for critical vulnerabilities increases risk of exploitation.
- ✗
Deploy the patch immediately without testing to all systems
Why it's wrong here
Immediate deployment to all systems may cause instability; a staged approach is better.
- ✗
Test the patch in a staging environment and then deploy to production
Why it's wrong here
Normal testing is appropriate for non-critical patches, but critical vulnerabilities may require expedited testing.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Risk Management and Security Controls
Key term
Vulnerability
A vulnerability is a weakness in a system, network, or software that could be exploited by a threat to cause harm or unauthorized access.
Key term
Patch management
Patch management is the process of identifying, acquiring, testing, and deploying software updates (patches) to fix vulnerabilities, bugs, or improve performance in IT systems.
About these practice questions
One of 976 original CC practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CC practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISC2 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 CC exam.