Isaca CISA Questions Answers

The best recommendation for an organization that is unable to add new servers on demand in a cost-efficient manner is to build a virtual environment. A virtual environment is a technology that allows multiple virtual machines to run on a single physical server, sharing its resources and capabilities. A virtual environment can help the organization add new servers on demand in a cost-efficient manner by reducing the need for hardware acquisition, maintenance, and power consumption. The other options are not as effective as building a virtual environment, as they do not address the root cause of the problem or provide the same benefits. Increasing the capacity of existing systems is a short-term solution that can help improve the performance and availability of the current servers, but it does not enable the organization to add new servers on demand in a cost-efficient manner. Upgrading hardware to newer technology is a costly solution that can help enhance the functionality and reliability of the servers, but it does not enable the organization to add new servers on demand in a cost-efficient manner. Hiring temporary contract workers for the IT function is an irrelevant solution that can help supplement the IT staff’s skills and knowledge, but it does not enable the organization to add new servers on demand in a cost-efficient manner. References: CISA Review Manual (Digital Version), Chapter 3, Section 3.3.1

The best way to protect sensitive information such as personally identifiable information (PII) stored in a particular data format while allowing the software developers to use it in development and test environments is data masking. Data masking is a technique that replaces or obscures sensitive data elements with fictitious or modified data elements that retain the original format and characteristics of the data. Data masking can help protect sensitive information such as PII stored in a particular data format while allowing the software developers to use it in development and test environments by preventing the exposure or disclosure of the real data values without affecting the functionality or performance of the software or application. The other options are not as effective as data masking in protecting sensitive information such as PII stored in a particular data format while allowing the software developers to use it in development and test environments, as they have different limitations or drawbacks. Data tokenization is a technique that replaces sensitive data elements with non-sensitive tokens that have no intrinsic value or meaning. Data tokenization can protect sensitive information suchas PII from unauthorized access or theft, but it may not retain the original format and characteristics of the data, which may affect the functionality or performance of the software or application. Data encryption is a technique that transforms sensitive data elements into unreadable or unintelligible ciphertext using an algorithm and a key. Data encryption can protect sensitive information such as PII from unauthorized access or modification, but it requires decryption to restore the original data values, which may introduce additional complexity or overhead to the software development process. Data abstraction is a technique that hides the details or complexity of data structures or operations from users or programmers by providing a simplified representation or interface. Data abstraction can help improve the usability or maintainability of software or applications, but it does not protect sensitive information such as PII from exposure or disclosure. References: CISA Review Manual (Digital Version), Chapter 5, Section 5.3.2

 The best metric to assure compliance with the policy of providing security awareness training to all new employees is the percentage of new hires that have completed the training, as this directly measures the extent to which the policy is implemented and enforced. The number of new hires who have violated enterprise security policies, the number of reported incidents by new hires, and the percentage of new hires who report incidents are not directly related to the policy, as they may depend on other factors such as the nature and frequency of threats, the effectiveness of security controls, and the reporting culture of the organization. References: CISA Review Manual (Digital Version), Chapter 5, Section 5.7

 Input validation is the best control to address SQL injection vulnerabilities, because it can prevent malicious users from entering SQL commands or statements into input fields that are intended for data entry, such as usernames or passwords. SQL injection is a technique that exploits a security vulnerability in an application’s software by inserting SQL code into a query string that can execute commands on a database server. Unicode translation, SSL encryption, and digital signatures are not effectivecontrols against SQL injection, because they do not prevent or detect SQL code injection into input fields. References: CISA Review Manual (Digital Version), Chapter 5, Section 5.4.2