ISC2 CC Security Principles Practice Question
Which of the following best describes the purpose of due care in information security?
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
✓
Implementing reasonable security measures to protect data
Due care means exercising a minimum standard of care to protect information assets, such as implementing basic security controls.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Implementing reasonable security measures to protect data
Why this is correct
Due care means implementing reasonable security measures to protect data, satisfying the question's focus on the purpose of due care. It reflects the ongoing obligation to identify risks and apply proportionate controls, distinguishing it from due diligence, which concerns the investigation and assessment of those risks before action.
- ✗
Prioritizing security incidents based on impact
Why it's wrong here
Incident prioritisation by impact is part of incident response handling, not due care. Due care concerns implementing and maintaining reasonable protective controls across the organisation. Prioritisation would be correct where the question asks how a team triages detected events during active response.
- ✗
Transferring risk to a third party
Why it's wrong here
Transferring risk to a third party is risk transference, typically via insurance or outsourcing, not due care. Due care is the effort taken to apply reasonable safeguards. Transference would be correct where the question asks how an organisation shifts financial exposure for a retained risk.
- ✗
Investigating a vendor's background before contracting
Why it's wrong here
Vendor background checks are due diligence — investigation before committing — not due care. Due care is the ongoing application of reasonable safeguards once obligations are known. It would be the correct choice where the question asks about assessing a supplier's risk posture prior to signing.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Key term
Confidentiality Integrity and Availability
The CIA Triad is a foundational security model that ensures data is kept secret, unaltered, and accessible when needed.
Key term
Standard
A standard is an agreed-upon set of rules, guidelines, or specifications that ensure consistency, compatibility, and quality across IT products, services, and processes.
About these practice questions
One of 989 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.