CBCP-002 Certified Business Continuity Professional (CBCP) Questions and Answers

BIA helps to identify all of the above aspects of an organization’s functions and processes. It helps to identify the critical services and products that the organization delivers to its customers and stakeholders, and the functions and processes that support them. It also helps to identify the critical interdependencies and interested parties that are involved in or affected by the organization’s functions and processes, such as suppliers, partners, regulators, or employees. Moreover, it helps to identify the tangible and intangible impacts of a disruption to the organization’s functions and processes over a period of time, such as financial losses, reputational damage, legal liabilities, or customer dissatisfaction. Verified References: https://www.ready.gov/business-impact-analysis https://drii.org/resources/professionalpractices/EN

Business continuity planning is the process of identifying, developing, and implementing strategies and plans to ensure the continuity of an organization’s critical functions and processes in the event of a disruption. It can be both time consuming and expensive, as it requires a thorough analysis of risks, impacts, resources, and recovery options. However, management will expect tangible benefits from the process, such as reduced losses, increased resilience, improved reputation, and compliance with regulations. Verified References: https://www.ready.gov/business-continuity-plan https://drii.org/resources/professionalpractices/EN

The four T’s of risk guidance produced by the Office of Government Commerce are transfer, tolerate, treat, and terminate. They are:

Transfer: This strategy involves transferring or sharing some or all of the responsibility or impact of a risk to another party, such as an insurer, a supplier, or a partner.

Tolerate: This strategy involves accepting or retaining a risk without taking any further action to reduce it, either because the risk level is acceptable or because the cost or effort of reducing it is not justified.

Treat: This strategy involves taking steps to reduce the likelihood or impact of a risk to an acceptable level, such as implementing controls, mitigations, or contingency plans.

Terminate: This strategy involves eliminating or avoiding a risk by discontinuing or changing the activity that causes it. Verified References:https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/the-four-ts.asp https://www.thebci.org/training-qualifications/good-practice-guidelines.html

A disaster lasting longer than seventy-two (72) hours requires implementation of a business continuity and disaster recovery plan. A business continuity and disaster recovery plan is a comprehensive document that outlines how an organization will respond to and recover from adisaster that disrupts its normal operations. It covers both the IT aspects (disaster recovery) and the business aspects (business continuity) of restoring the critical functions and processes within an acceptable time frame. A disaster lasting longer than seventy-two (72) hours is likely to have significant impacts on the organization’s performance, reputation, assets, and stakeholders, and therefore requires a coordinated and structured approach to ensure its survival and resilience. Verified References: https://www.ready.gov/business-continuity-plan https://www.csoonline.com/article/515730/business-continuity-and-disaster-recovery-planning-the-basics.html

Individual accountability for the management of the risk should be clearly established. This is true because accountability is one of the key principles of business continuity management. Accountability means that each person involved in the business continuity management program has a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities, as well as the authority and resources to perform them. Accountability also means that each person is held responsible for their actions and outcomes, and that they report on their performance and progressregularly. Verified References: https://www.iso.org/publication/PUB100442.html https://phoenixnap.com/blog/what-is-business-continuity-management

Operational risk is the type of risk that is related to human error or achievement. Operational risk is the uncertainty or variability of the execution or outcome of an organization’s functions or processes. Operational risk can result from factors such as inadequate policies, procedures, systems, controls, skills, training, supervision, or compliance. Operational risk can affect an organization’s operational efficiency, quality, safety, security, reputation, or profitability. Verified References: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/o/operational_risk.asp https://www.thebci.org/training-qualifications/good-practice-guidelines.html

In Business Continuity Planning (BCP), confidentiality and security of sensitive information are critical considerations when releasing details publicly. According to standard practices outlined in Business Continuity Professional guidelines, such as those from the Disaster Recovery Institute International (DRI) and ISO 22301, certain elements of a BCP should remain confidential to protect the organization and its stakeholders.

Process flows: These describe how critical processes are maintained or recovered during a disruption. While detailed process flows may be sensitive internally, a high-level overview can often be shared publicly to demonstrate preparedness without compromising operational security. Thus, they are not inherently prohibited from public release.

Contact lists: These contain personal and operational details such as names, phone numbers, and roles of key personnel involved in the BCP. Releasing contact lists publicly poses significant risks, including privacy violations, potential targeting by malicious actors, and operational vulnerabilities. Best practices dictate that contact lists should remain confidential and restricted to authorized personnel only.

BIA results: The Business Impact Analysis (BIA) identifies critical functions, recovery time objectives (RTOs), and potential impacts of disruptions. While detailed BIA results are sensitive, summary-level findings (e.g., critical processes identified without specific vulnerabilities) can sometimes be shared to show due diligence. However, this is not strictly prohibited in public releases if anonymized or generalized.

All of the above: Since process flows and BIA results can be released in a controlled, summarized form, this option is incorrect. The key element that should unequivocally not be released is the contact list due to its sensitive nature.

Therefore, the correct answer isB. Contact lists, as it aligns with the principle of protecting sensitive personal and operational data in public disclosures.

References:

DRI International Professional Practices for Business Continuity Management (2023), Section 6: Business Continuity Plan Development – Emphasizes safeguarding sensitive data like contact details.

ISO 22301:2019, Clause 8.4 – Highlights confidentiality in BCP documentation and communication.

A disaster can also be declared for an illness pandemic where a significant portion of employees are sick. This is true because an illness pandemic is a type of natural disaster that can affect an organization’s ability to continue its normal operations. An illness pandemic can cause absenteeism, reduced productivity, increased costs, supply chain disruptions, customer dissatisfaction, or regulatory compliance issues. Therefore, an organization may need to declare a disaster and activate its business continuity and disaster recovery plan if an illness pandemic impacts its critical functions and processes beyond an acceptable level. VerifiedReferences: https://www.ready.gov/business-continuity-plan https://www.csoonline.com/article/515730/business-continuity-and-disaster-recovery-planning-the-basics.html

In the event of a disaster that destroys the physical office site operations will be relocated to a temporary site. This is true because one of the recovery strategies for a disaster is to have an alternate site where the critical functions and processes can be resumed until the primary site is restored or replaced. The alternate site can be a pre-arranged location, such as a rented office space, a hotel, or another branch of the same organization, or a mobile facility, such as a trailer or a container. The alternate site should have the necessary equipment, systems, data, and resources to support the continuity of the business. Verified References: https://www.ready.gov/business-continuity-plan https://www.csoonline.com/article/515730/business-continuity-and-disaster-recovery-planning-the-basics.html