- A
Earthquake
Why wrong: Environmental threat.
- B
Hardware failure
Technical threat.
- C
Unauthorized access by employee
Why wrong: Human threat.
- D
Software bug
Technical threat.
- E
Social engineering
Why wrong: Human threat.
Question 68 of 1,000
SSCP Risk Identification, Monitoring, and Analysis Practice Question
This SSCP practice question tests your understanding of risk identification, monitoring, and analysis. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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.
Which TWO of the following are examples of technical threat sources that should be considered during risk identification?
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
✓
Hardware failure
Hardware failure (B) is a technical threat source because it involves the physical degradation or malfunction of IT infrastructure components such as hard drives, power supplies, or network interfaces. During risk identification, hardware failures are considered technical threats as they can directly cause data loss, service disruption, or system unavailability, requiring specific controls like redundancy and monitoring.
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.
- ✗
Earthquake
Why it's wrong here
Environmental threat.
- ✓
Hardware failure
Why this is correct
Technical threat.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Unauthorized access by employee
Why it's wrong here
Human threat.
- ✓
Software bug
Why this is correct
Technical threat.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Social engineering
Why it's wrong here
Human threat.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse threat categories, mistakenly classifying human-based threats like social engineering or insider actions as technical threat sources, when the SSCP exam strictly separates technical threats (hardware/software failures) from human and environmental threats.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Technical threat sources originate from failures or vulnerabilities in hardware, software, or firmware, such as disk controller errors causing RAID array corruption or memory leaks in an operating system kernel. In risk identification, these are distinct from environmental or human threats because they are addressed through technical controls like ECC memory, redundant power supplies, and patch management. A real-world scenario is a server power supply failure causing a cascading outage in a virtualized cluster, which is a technical threat source that must be identified separately from physical security risks.
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
An employee at a financial services firm receives an email that appears to come from the IT helpdesk, asking them to reset their password via a link. The link leads to a convincing fake portal that harvests credentials. Security teams use phishing simulations and security-awareness training to reduce this attack vector. Questions like this test whether you can identify social engineering techniques and appropriate controls.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SSCP question test?
Risk Identification, Monitoring, and Analysis — This question tests Risk Identification, Monitoring, and Analysis — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Hardware failure — Hardware failure (B) is a technical threat source because it involves the physical degradation or malfunction of IT infrastructure components such as hard drives, power supplies, or network interfaces. During risk identification, hardware failures are considered technical threats as they can directly cause data loss, service disruption, or system unavailability, requiring specific controls like redundancy and monitoring.
What should I do if I get this SSCP 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
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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.
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