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SSCP Practice Question: Which THREE of the following are essential…
Which THREE of the following are essential elements of an effective incident response plan? (Choose three.)
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse supporting activities (like PR or insurance) with the mandatory operational phases defined in the NIST incident response lifecycle, leading them to select non-essential business functions instead of the core technical steps.
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
✓
Containment, eradication, and recovery
The incident response plan lifecycle, as defined by NIST SP 800-61, includes four core phases: Preparation; Detection and Analysis; Containment, Eradication, and Recovery; and Post-Incident Activity. Options A, B, and E directly map to these essential phases, ensuring the organization can detect an incident, contain it to prevent spread, eradicate the root cause, recover normal operations, and continuously improve through training and preparation.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Containment, eradication, and recovery
Why this is correct
These steps limit damage, remove threats, and restore operations.
- ✓
Detection and analysis
Why this is correct
Detection identifies incidents, and analysis determines scope.
- ✗
Public relations and media notification
Why it's wrong here
Media notification is secondary; not a core element of the plan.
- ✗
Cyber insurance purchasing
Why it's wrong here
Insurance is a financial risk management tool, not a response step.
- ✓
Preparation and training
Why this is correct
Preparation ensures the team is ready to respond.
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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.