Question 520
A ransomware actor with domain-admin access can delete connected production backups. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Create protected offline/immutable or separately administered backups with controlled restore credentials
- Depend only on storage replication of deletions
- Keep backups only as writable shares under the same account
- Use appropriate active redundancy and fault-tolerant state handling for the critical component
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:Backup isolation prevents compromise of production administration from destroying recovery points.
Incorrect Answers
B:Replication can copy attacker deletions.
C:Common administration enables destructive propagation.
D:Simple periodic backup cannot deliver continuous operation. Create protected offline/immutable or separately administered backups with controlled restore credentials.
Question 521
A regional outage tolerance is two hours and a backup-only cold site would take two days to activate. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Claim any warm site guarantees zero data loss
- Choose cold recovery solely because it has lower rent
- Select a recovery architecture whose tested activation time fits the business RTO and cost appetite
- Include shared dependencies in failover architecture and run end-to-end cutover testing
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Recovery site classification must be tied to practical activation time.
Incorrect Answers
A:RPO also depends on replication and application state.
B:Low cost fails the short RTO.
D:Redundant application instances cannot run if common services disappear. Select a recovery architecture whose tested activation time fits the business RTO and cost appetite.
Question 522
An application is redundant across sites but depends on one nonreplicated signing service during failover. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Create protected offline/immutable or separately administered backups with controlled restore credentials
- Assume a DNS switch alone recreates missing services
- Include shared dependencies in failover architecture and run end-to-end cutover testing
- Count two front-end instances as full disaster resilience
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Redundant application instances cannot run if common services disappear.
Incorrect Answers
A:Backup isolation prevents compromise of production administration from destroying recovery points. Include shared dependencies in failover architecture and run end-to-end cutover testing.
B:Traffic routing cannot provision unavailable dependencies.
D:Frontend count omits critical dependencies.
Question 523
A clinical monitoring system cannot tolerate brief interruption during a node crash. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Include shared dependencies in failover architecture and run end-to-end cutover testing
- Use one powerful server as the only processing node
- Use appropriate active redundancy and fault-tolerant state handling for the critical component
- Rely on manual restoration after a day
Explanation
Correct Answer
C:Simple periodic backup cannot deliver continuous operation.
Incorrect Answers
A:Redundant application instances cannot run if common services disappear. Use appropriate active redundancy and fault-tolerant state handling for the critical component.
B:Capacity does not equal tolerance of a single failure.
D:Recovery delay is incompatible with the need.
Question 524
After a prior backup isolation finding, an international retailer reports that the approved safeguard is implemented: “Create protected offline/immutable or separately administered backups with controlled restore credentials.” The assurance team must decide whether this measure demonstrably works in operation. Which evidence would MOST directly establish its effectiveness?
- Accept a signed change ticket saying: Create protected offline/immutable or separately administered backups with controlled restore credentials
- Use the completion of this alternative as proof: Keep backups only as writable shares under the same account
- Run this adjacent but different test as the sole proof: Execute a recovery exercise and measure elapsed activation and lost data against targets
- Attempt a controlled unauthorized delete and a clean restore from protected recovery storage
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Both prevention and restoration are required.
Incorrect Answers
A:Attempt a controlled unauthorized delete and a clean restore from protected recovery storage. Both prevention and restoration are required.
B:Common administration enables destructive propagation. Attempt a controlled unauthorized delete and a clean restore from protected recovery storage.
C:Timing and data loss evidence validates recovery design. It tests hot/warm/cold, while this case requires evidence about backup isolation.
Question 525
After a prior hot/warm/cold finding, a university consortium reports that the approved safeguard is implemented: “Select a recovery architecture whose tested activation time fits the business RTO and cost appetite.” The assurance team must decide whether this measure demonstrably works in operation. Which evidence would MOST directly establish its effectiveness?
- Run this adjacent but different test as the sole proof: Fail a node during a controlled run and confirm continuity and state correctness
- Execute a recovery exercise and measure elapsed activation and lost data against targets
- Accept a signed change ticket saying: Select a recovery architecture whose tested activation time fits the business RTO and cost appetite
- Use the completion of this alternative as proof: Choose cold recovery solely because it has lower rent
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Timing and data loss evidence validates recovery design.
Incorrect Answers
A:Failure injection tests actual tolerance rather than capacity. It tests fault tolerance, while this case requires evidence about hot/warm/cold.
C:Execute a recovery exercise and measure elapsed activation and lost data against targets. Timing and data loss evidence validates recovery design.
D:Low cost fails the short RTO. Execute a recovery exercise and measure elapsed activation and lost data against targets.
Question 526
After a data-center flood, different teams give customers contradictory recovery dates. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Stop all internal communication until systems return
- Activate an approved crisis communication plan with authorized spokespeople and verified status updates
- Establish alternate decision makers, remote contact trees and safe staff recovery processes
- Allow all staff to publish guesses
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Consistent stakeholder communication is part of disaster management.
Incorrect Answers
A:Coordination is necessary during restoration.
C:Recovery plans depend on available people as well as technology. Activate an approved crisis communication plan with authorized spokespeople and verified status updates.
D:Unverified messages damage trust.
Question 527
A major power outage has begun and operators are unsure who may declare the disaster. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Use predefined incident/disaster declaration criteria, authority and escalation paths
- Wait for consensus of every employee
- Validate application consistency and transaction-level business outcomes before service signoff
- Let whoever sees the outage destroy all services to force recovery
Explanation
Correct Answer
A:Activation decisions should be timely and governed.
Incorrect Answers
B:Unlimited approval chains can miss RTOs.
C:Technical uptime does not prove data integrity or business recovery. Use predefined incident/disaster declaration criteria, authority and escalation paths.
D:Uncoordinated destruction adds harm.
Question 528
A recovered database accepts connections but reconciliation shows missing customer orders. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Delete reconciliation reports to reduce confusion
- Declare success when the login screen loads
- Establish alternate decision makers, remote contact trees and safe staff recovery processes
- Validate application consistency and transaction-level business outcomes before service signoff
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Technical uptime does not prove data integrity or business recovery.
Incorrect Answers
A:Hiding evidence does not restore data.
B:Superficial availability misses missing records.
C:Recovery plans depend on available people as well as technology. Validate application consistency and transaction-level business outcomes before service signoff.
Question 529
A hurricane evacuates an office housing the only documented disaster recovery leader. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Send responders into an unsafe building to retrieve runbooks
- Require the unavailable leader to approve every action personally
- Use predefined incident/disaster declaration criteria, authority and escalation paths
- Establish alternate decision makers, remote contact trees and safe staff recovery processes
Explanation
Correct Answer
D:Recovery plans depend on available people as well as technology.
Incorrect Answers
A:Personnel safety comes before service restoration.
B:A single-person dependency blocks recovery.
C:Activation decisions should be timely and governed. Establish alternate decision makers, remote contact trees and safe staff recovery processes.
Question 530
Executives want to rehearse a ransomware decision without touching production systems. Which response best addresses the central security requirement with a defensible, risk-based design?
- Fail production storage to simulate every tabletop scenario
- Use a facilitated scenario discussion that tests roles, decisions and communications
- Run a parallel recovery exercise with defined isolation and reconciliation checks
- Assume attendance proves backup restorability
Explanation
Correct Answer
B:Tabletop exercises assess decisions with low operational disruption.
Incorrect Answers
A:A live outage is not a discussion-only exercise.
C:Parallel tests recovery capability without switching production service to standby. Use a facilitated scenario discussion that tests roles, decisions and communications.
D:Discussion cannot demonstrate actual recovery functionality.
Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) Practice Tests