Business impact analysis (BIA) is the most helpful tool in identifying loss magnitude during risk analysis of a new system, as it involves estimating the potential financial and operational losses resulting from the disruption or degradation of the system. Recovery time objective (RTO), cost-benefit analysis, and cyber insurance coverage are not the most helpful tools, as they are more related to the recovery, evaluation, and transfer of the risk, respectively, rather than the identification of the loss magnitude. References = CRISC Review Manual, 7th Edition, page 108.

The most effective way to help ensure accountability for managing risk is to assign process owners to key risk areas. Process owners are the persons or entities that have the authority and responsibility to manage a specific process or a group of related processes. Process owners help to identify, assess, and respond to the risks associated with the process, and to monitor and report on the process performance and improvement.
Process owners also help to communicate and coordinate the process management activities with the relevant stakeholders, such as the board, management, business units, and IT functions. Assigning process owners to key risk areas helps to ensure accountability for managing risk, because it helps to define and clarify the roles and responsibilities of the process owners, and to establish and enforce the expectations and standards for the process owners. Assigning process owners to key risk areas also helps to measure and evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the process owners, and to identify and address any issues or gaps in the process management activities. The other options are not as effective as assigning process owners to key risk areas, although they may be related to the risk management process. Obtaining independent risk assessments, assigning incident response action plan responsibilities, and creating accurate process narratives are all activities that can help to support or improve the risk management process, but they do not necessarily ensure accountability for managing risk. References = Risk and Information Systems Control Study Manual, Chapter
2, Section 2.2.1, page 2-11.

The risk practitioner's best course of action after identifying risk scenarios related to noncompliance with new industry regulations is to escalate to senior management, as they have the authority and responsibility to decide on the appropriate risk response and allocate the necessary resources. Transferring the risk, implementing monitoring controls, and recalculating the risk are possible risk responses, but they require senior management approval and direction. References = Risk Scenarios Toolkit, page 19; CRISC Review Manual, 7th Edition, page 107.

The FIRST thing that the organization should do to reduce the risk of data exposure when modifying its system to enable acceptance of credit card payments is to conduct a risk assessment, because it is a process that involves identifying and analyzing the potential risks, threats, and vulnerabilities that may affect the system and the data, and their likelihood and impact on the business objectives and processes. A risk assessment can help to determine the current risk level and exposure, and to provide the basis for selecting and implementing the appropriate risk responses and controls. The other options are not the first thing that the organization should do, because:
* Option B: Updating the security strategy is a result of conducting a risk assessment, but not the first thing that the organization should do. A security strategy is a plan that defines the security objectives, policies, standards, and procedures for the system and the data, and it should be aligned with the risk assessment results and the business requirements and expectations.
* Option C: Implementing additional controls is a response to the risk assessment results, but not the first thing that the organization should do. Controls are the measures that are designed and implemented to prevent or reduce the occurrence or impact of the risks, threats, and vulnerabilities, and to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the system and the data.
* Option D: Updating the risk register is a part of the risk assessment process, but not the first thing that the organization should do. A risk register is a tool that documents and tracks the identified risks, their characteristics, their status, and their responses, and it should be updated regularly to reflect the current risk profile and exposure of the system and the data. References = Risk and Information Systems Control Study Manual, 7th Edition, ISACA, 2020, p. 108.

The best way to mitigate the ongoing risk associated with operating system (OS) vulnerabilities is to document and implement a patching process. A patching process is a set of procedures and guidelines that define how to identify, evaluate, test, apply, and monitor patches for the OS. Patches are updates or fixes that address the known vulnerabilities or bugs in the OS. By documenting and implementing a patching process, the organization can ensure that the OS is regularly updated and protected from the potential exploits or attacks that may exploit the vulnerabilities. The other options are not as effective as documenting and implementing a patching process, as they are related to the temporary, partial, or reactive measures to deal with the OS vulnerabilities, not the proactive and continuous measures to prevent or reduce the OS vulnerabilities. References = Risk and Information Systems Control Study Manual, Chapter 3: IT Risk Response, Section 3.3: IT Risk Response Implementation, page 145.