Control Requirements for Gap Analysis

C.

Vendor recommendations would not be pertinent to the gap analysis after an audit.

Although vendor recommendations will typically play a role in the development of corporate policies or contractual requirements, they are not required.

Regulations, corporate policy, and contractual requirements all determine the expected or mandated controls in place on a system.

During an audit, a gap analysis is conducted to identify gaps between existing security controls and required security controls. To perform a gap analysis, the auditor needs to have a clear understanding of the required controls. The required controls are determined by several factors, including contractual requirements, regulations, vendor recommendations, and corporate policy.

The answer to the question is option (D) Corporate policy, as it is not an input that would be excluded from the control requirements used as part of a gap analysis. Corporate policies provide guidance and direction to employees on how to comply with the organization's objectives and can be used to derive control requirements.

Contractual requirements are agreements between two or more parties that outline specific security requirements that must be met by one or both parties. These requirements can be used to identify specific controls that must be implemented.

Regulations are legal requirements that organizations must comply with to operate within a specific industry or jurisdiction. Regulations can include specific security requirements that must be met to protect sensitive information and can be used to identify required security controls.

Vendor recommendations are security guidelines and best practices provided by vendors who supply technology or services to the organization. These recommendations can be used to identify best practices and specific security controls that should be implemented to protect against threats.

In summary, during the course of an audit, all four factors listed in the answers (contractual requirements, regulations, vendor recommendations, and corporate policy) can be used as inputs to determine control requirements used as part of a gap analysis, except for Corporate policy, which is not excluded.