SSCP Incident Response and Recovery Practice Question
During a ransomware incident, the incident response team needs to recover encrypted servers. Which THREE steps are essential for successful recovery? (Select THREE)
⚠ Common exam trap
The SSCP exam often tests the misconception that paying the ransom is a valid recovery step, but it emphasizes that payment should never be recommended due to lack of guarantee and ethical concerns.
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
✓
Restore data from the most recent clean backup
Restoring from the most recent clean backup is the primary recovery method for ransomware incidents. It ensures that encrypted data can be recovered without paying the ransom, provided the backup was taken before the infection and is stored offline or immutable to prevent encryption. This aligns with the 3-2-1 backup strategy (three copies, two media types, one offsite) and is a core step in the NIST SP 800-61 incident response process.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Restore data from the most recent clean backup
Why this is correct
Correct. Provides a known-good state.
- ✗
Pay the ransom to obtain the decryption key
Why it's wrong here
Paying ransom is not recommended and does not guarantee recovery.
- ✓
Patch the vulnerability that allowed the ransomware to enter
Why this is correct
Correct. Prevents reinfection.
- ✗
Delete all user accounts and recreate them
Why it's wrong here
Unnecessary and disruptive; password reset may suffice.
- ✓
Scan restored systems to ensure eradication of malware
Why this is correct
Correct. Verifies that the threat is removed.
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This SSCP question is part of Courseiva's 920-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This SSCP 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 SSCP exam.