ISC2 CC Security Operations Practice Question
A critical zero-day vulnerability is actively being exploited in the wild, affecting an organization's internet-facing application. Which patching approach should be taken?
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
✓
Deploy an emergency patch without testing.
Emergency patching is used for vulnerabilities that are actively exploited or have high severity, bypassing 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.
- ✗
Isolate the application from the network and wait for a vendor patch.
Why it's wrong here
Isolation may be a temporary measure, but patching is still needed.
- ✓
Deploy an emergency patch without testing.
Why this is correct
Deploying an emergency patch without testing is the appropriate response due to the immediate and severe threat posed by a critical zero-day vulnerability actively being exploited in the wild. The paramount concern is to halt active exploitation and prevent further compromise as quickly as possible. While rigorous testing is normally crucial, the urgency of stopping an ongoing attack outweighs the risks associated with an untested deployment, directly addressing the constraint of mitigating an active, critical threat.
- ✗
Implement a web application firewall (WAF) as a permanent solution.
Why it's wrong here
WAF is a compensating control, not a patch.
- ✗
Follow the standard patch lifecycle with testing.
Why it's wrong here
Standard lifecycle is too slow for active exploits.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Risk Management and Security Controls
Key term
Organization
An Organization is a top-level container in Google Cloud that represents your company or entities and serves as the root node for all your cloud resources, policies, and access control.
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.
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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.