Get CTPRP Dumps : Verified Certified Third-Party Risk Professional (CTPRP)

Risk registers are tools that help organizations document, monitor, and manage their third party risks. They typically include information such as the risk description, category, source, impact, likelihood, rating, owner, status, and action plan. Risk registers enable organizations to prioritize their risks, assign responsibilities, track progress, and report on their risk posture. According to the CTPRP Study Guide, "A risk register is a tool for capturing and managing risks throughout the third-party lifecycle. It provides a comprehensive view of the organization’s third-party risk profile and facilitates risk reporting and communication."1 Similarly, the GARP Best Practices Guidance for Third-Party Risk states, "A risk register is a tool that records and tracks the risks associated with third parties. It helps to identify, assess, and prioritize risks, as well as to assign ownership, mitigation actions, and target dates."2

References:

• CTPRP Study Guide
• GARP Best Practices Guidance for Third-Party Risk

A cloud hosting vendor assessment program is a process of evaluating the security, compliance, and performance of a cloud service provider (CSP) that hosts an organization’s data or applications. A cloud hosting vendor assessment program typically includes the following components123:

• Reviewing the entity’s image snapshot approval and management process: This component involves verifying how the CSP creates, approves, stores, and deletes image snapshots of the virtual machines or containers that run the organization’s workloads. Image snapshots can contain sensitive data or configuration settings that need to be protected from unauthorized access or modification.
• Requiring security services documentation and audit attestation reports: This component involves requesting and reviewing the CSP’s documentation and reports that demonstrate the security controls and practices that the CSP implements to protect the organization’s data and applications. These may include service level agreements (SLAs), security policies and procedures, security certifications and standards, vulnerability scanning and patching reports, incident response and disaster recovery plans, and independent audit reports such as SOC 2 or ISO 27001.
• Requiring compliance evidence that provides the definition of patching responsibilities: This component involves asking and verifying how the CSP handles the patching of the operating systems, applications, and libraries that run on the cloud infrastructure. Patching is a critical activity to prevent security breaches and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. The organization needs to understand the roles and responsibilities of the CSP and the organization in patching the cloud environment, and the frequency and scope of patching activities.

The component that is typically NOT part of a cloud hosting vendor assessment program is conducting customer performed penetration tests. Penetration testing is a method of simulating a cyberattack on a system or network to identify and exploit vulnerabilities and weaknesses. While penetration testing can be a valuable tool to assess the security posture of a CSP, it is not usually included in a cloud hosting vendor assessment program for the following reasons :

• Penetration testing may violate the CSP’s terms of service or acceptable use policy, which may prohibit or restrict the customer from performing any unauthorized or disruptive activities on the cloud infrastructure. The customer may face legal or contractual consequences if they conduct penetration testing without the CSP’s consent or knowledge.
• Penetration testing may interfere with the CSP’s normal operations or affect the availability and performance of the cloud services for other customers. The customer may cause unintended damage or disruption to the CSP’s systems or networks, or trigger false alarms or alerts that may divert the CSP’s resources or attention.
• Penetration testing may not provide a comprehensive or accurate assessment of the CSP’s security, as the customer may have limited visibility or access to the CSP’s internal systems or networks, or may encounter security mechanisms or countermeasures that prevent or limit the penetration testing activities. The customer may also face ethical or legal issues if they access or compromise the data or systems of other customers or the CSP.

Therefore, the verified answer to the question is D. Conducting customer performed penetration tests.

References:

• Four Important Best Practices for Assessing Cloud Vendors
• Top 11 Questionnaires for IT Vendor Assessment in 2024
• Cloud Vendor Assessments | Done The Right Way
• [Penetration Testing in the Cloud: What You Need to Know]
• [Cloud Penetration Testing: Challenges and Best Practices]

Scoping is a critical step in third party assessments, as it determines the scope and depth of the assessment based on the inherent risk, impact, and complexity of the vendor relationship. Scoping helps to ensure that the assessment is relevant, efficient, and consistent with the outsourcer’s risk appetite and objectives. Scoping also helps to avoid over or under assessing the vendor, which could result in unnecessary costs, delays, or gaps in risk management. Scoping is not a one-time activity, but rather an ongoing process that should be reviewed and updated throughout the vendor lifecycle. Scoping should be aligned with the outsourcer’s third party risk management framework and policies, and follow the best practices and guidelines provided by the Shared Assessments Program and other industry standards. References:

• 1: THIRD PARTY RISK MANAGEMENT TOOLKIT - Shared Assessments, pages 4-6
• 2: How Dynamic Scoping Can Improve Vendor Risk Assessments - ProcessUnity
• 3: Inherent Risk Tiering for Third-Party Vendor Assessments - MindPoint Group

A well-defined third party risk management program does not require conducting onsite or virtual assessments for all third parties, as this would be impractical, costly, and inefficient. Instead, a TPRM program should adopt a risk-based approach to determine the frequency, scope, and depth of assessments based on the inherent and residual risks posed by each third party. This means that some third parties may require more frequent and comprehensive assessments than others, depending on factors such as the nature, scope, and criticality of their services, the sensitivity and volume of data they access or process, the regulatory and contractual obligations they must comply with, and the results of previous assessments and monitoring activities. A risk-based approach to assessments allows an organization to allocate its resources and efforts more effectively and efficiently, while also ensuring that the most significant risks are adequately addressed and mitigated. References:

• Shared Assessments, CTPRP Job Guide, page 9: “The frequency, scope, and depth of assessments should be determined by the inherent and residual risks posed by each third party.”
• OneTrust, [What is Third-Party Risk Management?]: “A risk-based approach to third-party risk management means that you prioritize your efforts and resources based on the level of risk each vendor poses to your organization.”
• [Deloitte], [Third Party Risk Management: Managing Risk]: “A risk-based approach to third-party risk management helps organizations prioritize their efforts and resources based on the level of risk each third party poses to the organization.”

Vendor inventory is a list of all the third-party vendors that an organization engages with, along with relevant information about their products, services, contracts, and risks. Vendor inventory is a crucial tool for vendor risk management, as it helps an organization identify, assess, monitor, and mitigate the potential risks associated with its vendors. Vendor inventory also helps an organization prioritize its vendor oversight activities, allocate its resources efficiently, and comply with its regulatory obligations12.

One of the key steps in creating and maintaining a vendor inventory is to assign a risk rating and a vendor classification to each vendor, based on various attributes that reflect the level of risk and criticality they pose to the organization. The risk rating and vendor classification help an organization determine the frequency and depth of its vendor due diligence, review, and audit processes, as well as the appropriate controls and remediation actions to implement3 .

Some of the common attributes used to assign risk rating and vendor classification are :

• Type of data accessed, processed, or retained: This attribute indicates the sensitivity and confidentiality of the data that the vendor handles on behalf of the organization, such as personally identifiable information (PII), protected health information (PHI), financial information, intellectual property, etc. The more sensitive and confidential the data, the higher the risk rating and vendor classification, as the vendor must comply with strict security and privacy standards and regulations, and the organization must protect itself from data breaches, leaks, or losses.
• Type of systems accessed: This attribute indicates the access level and privileges that the vendor has to the organization’s systems, such as networks, servers, databases, applications, etc. The more access and privileges the vendor has, the higher the risk rating and vendor classification, as the vendor must adhere to the organization’s policies and procedures, and the organization must safeguard itself from unauthorized or malicious activities, such as cyberattacks, sabotage, or espionage.
• Type of network connectivity: This attribute indicates the mode and frequency of the data transmission and communication between the vendor and the organization, such as online, offline, real-time, batch, etc. The more network connectivity the vendor has, the higher the risk rating and vendor classification, as the vendor must ensure the availability, integrity, and reliability of the data, and the organization must prevent data interception, modification, or disruption.

The type of contract addendum is NOT an attribute used to assign risk rating and vendor classification, as it is not directly related to the risk or criticality of the vendor. The type of contract addendum is a legal document that modifies or supplements the original contract between the vendor and the organization, such as adding or deleting terms, clauses, or provisions. The type of contract addendum may reflect the changes or updates in the vendor relationship, such as scope, duration, price, service level, etc., but it does not indicate the level of risk or impact that the vendor has on the organization. Therefore, the type of contract addendum is not a relevant factor for vendor risk assessment and management . References:

• 1: Vendor Inventory - Shared Assessments
• 2: Vendor Inventory Management: A Guide to Third-Party Risk Management
• 3: Vendor Risk Rating - Shared Assessments
• : [Vendor Risk Rating: How to Rate Your Vendors | Smartsheet]
• : [Vendor Classification - Shared Assessments]
• : [Vendor Tiering: How to Classify Your Vendors | Smartsheet]
• : Contract Addendum - Shared Assessments
• : What is a Contract Addendum? | Definition and Examples | Imperva