The correct answer is all of the above because a legal hold immediately overrides any scheduled data retention policy, requiring the preservation of every data set that could contain relevant evidence. In this scenario, the lawsuit mandates the preservation of all records related to the 2018 customer dispute, meaning email logs, payment card data, and customer records must all be kept intact, even if their normal retention periods have expired. This tests your understanding of legal hold and eDiscovery under FRCP Rule 26, a critical concept in the Certified Information Systems Professional CISSP exam’s Asset Security domain, where the common trap is assuming only the most obvious data set must be preserved. Instead, remember that any data potentially relevant to litigation—regardless of its scheduled retention—falls under the hold. A useful memory tip: “Hold all, not just the bold”—when a legal hold is active, preserve every data set that might touch the dispute.
CISSP Asset Security Practice Question
This CISSP practice question tests your understanding of asset security. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
Exhibit
Data Retention Policy: Customer records: 7 years after account closure. Email logs: 90 days. Payment card data: 3 years post transaction per PCI DSS.
Refer to the exhibit. An organization has a lawsuit requiring preservation of all records related to a customer dispute from 2018. Which data set must be preserved beyond its scheduled retention?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
All of the above
Option C is correct because a legal hold overrides any scheduled retention policy. The lawsuit requires preservation of all records related to the 2018 customer dispute, which includes email logs (for communication evidence), payment card data (for transaction records), and customer records (for account details). Under eDiscovery rules (FRCP Rule 26), any data set that may contain relevant information must be preserved, even if its normal retention period has expired.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Email logs from 2018
Why it's wrong here
Email logs are included if related to the dispute.
✗
Payment card data from 2018 transactions
Why it's wrong here
Payment data is also subject to legal hold.
✓
All of the above
Why this is correct
Legal hold applies to all relevant data, overriding retention schedules.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Customer records from 2018 accounts that are still open
Why it's wrong here
Even closed accounts' records from 2018 must be preserved.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume only the most obvious data set (e.g., customer records) needs preservation, but the legal hold applies to all data sets that could contain relevant information, including logs and payment data, regardless of their normal retention schedules.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Legal holds (litigation holds) are governed by eDiscovery standards, such as FRCP Rule 26(b)(1), which requires preservation of all potentially relevant ESI (Electronically Stored Information). In practice, organizations must implement a hold that suspends deletion processes, including automated purging of email logs (e.g., via journaling in Exchange), transaction logs (e.g., database audit trails), and customer records. Failure to preserve can result in spoliation sanctions, including adverse inference instructions or monetary penalties.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A SOC analyst notices unusual lateral movement in the network at 2 AM. The IR playbook dictates: identify and contain (isolate the affected machine), then eradicate (remove the malware), then recover (restore from backup), then document. Skipping containment before eradication risks the attacker regaining access. Questions like this test the sequence and rationale of incident response phases.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this CISSP question in full detail.
Asset Security — This question tests Asset Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: All of the above — Option C is correct because a legal hold overrides any scheduled retention policy. The lawsuit requires preservation of all records related to the 2018 customer dispute, which includes email logs (for communication evidence), payment card data (for transaction records), and customer records (for account details). Under eDiscovery rules (FRCP Rule 26), any data set that may contain relevant information must be preserved, even if its normal retention period has expired.
What should I do if I get this CISSP question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
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These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. Refer to the exhibit. A legal hold exception preserves FinancialRecords FIN-001 and FIN-002. What is the correct action for FinancialRecords that are not under legal hold?
hard
A.They should be audited and then preserved indefinitely
✓ B.They should be archived after 2555 days
C.They should be deleted after 2555 days
D.They should be deleted after 365 days
Why B: The exhibit shows a retention policy for FinancialRecords with a retention period of 2555 days (7 years). Legal hold exceptions preserve FIN-001 and FIN-002, but records not under legal hold must follow the standard retention policy. The correct action is to archive them after 2555 days, as archiving retains data for compliance or future reference without indefinite preservation, aligning with the policy's lifecycle.
Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
Question Discussion
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