iSACA Cybersecurity Fundamentals Certification Practice Exam

What is a common risk associated with virtualization if not managed correctly?

1. Reduced system performance

2. Large costs due to unnecessary resources

3. Single point of failure within the system

4. Increased physical hardware requirements

The correct answer is: Single point of failure within the system

In virtualized environments, managing resources effectively is crucial to prevent the emergence of a single point of failure. When virtualization is not managed properly, critical virtual machines (VMs) may become overly dependent on a single physical host or hypervisor. If this host fails, it can result in the disruption of all VMs running on it, potentially leading to significant downtime and data loss. This risk emphasizes the importance of redundancy and failover mechanisms in a virtualized setup. Strategies like load balancing, clustering, and ensuring that VMs are distributed across multiple hosts can mitigate this risk. By implementing these best practices, organizations can enhance the resilience of their virtual environments, ensuring that a failure in one component does not compromise the entire system. While other risks associated with virtualization can arise, such as performance issues or cost management challenges, the concept of a single point of failure specifically highlights a critical vulnerability in the architecture of virtual systems that necessitates careful planning and management.