hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped
SSCP Practice Question: During a risk assessment, a team identifies that…
During a risk assessment, a team identifies that the annualized loss expectancy (ALE) for a critical asset is $50,000. A proposed control costs $15,000 per year and will reduce the annualized rate of occurrence (ARO) from 5 to 1. The single loss expectancy (SLE) is unchanged at $10,000. What is the net benefit of implementing the control?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates often forget to subtract the annual control cost from the risk reduction (ALE reduction), mistakenly selecting the risk reduction amount ($40,000) as the net benefit.
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
✓
$25,000
The current ALE is $50,000 (ARO of 5 × SLE of $10,000). With the control, ARO drops to 1, so the new ALE is $10,000 (1 × $10,000). The reduction in ALE is $40,000. Subtracting the annual control cost of $15,000 gives a net benefit of $25,000. This aligns with the formula: Net Benefit = (Old ALE – New ALE) – Annual Control Cost.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
$40,000
Why it's wrong here
This is the ALE reduction, but cost not subtracted.
- ✗
$10,000
Why it's wrong here
This is the new ALE, not the net benefit.
- ✗
$35,000
Why it's wrong here
This might be ALE reduction minus something else.
- ✓
$25,000
Why this is correct
ALE reduction minus control cost equals net benefit.
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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.