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CRISC · Question #442

Which of the following is a risk practitioner's BEST recommendation regarding disaster recovery management (DRM) for Software as a Service (SaaS) providers?

The correct answer is C. Codify availability requirements in the SaaS provider's contract. For Software as a Service (SaaS) disaster recovery, the best recommendation is to legally bind the provider to specific availability requirements within the contract.

Submitted by salim_om· Apr 18, 2026Governance

Question

Which of the following is a risk practitioner's BEST recommendation regarding disaster recovery management (DRM) for Software as a Service (SaaS) providers?

Options

  • AConduct inoremental backups of data in the SaaS environment to a local data center.
  • BImplement segregation of duties between multiple SaaS solution providers.
  • CCodify availability requirements in the SaaS provider's contract.
  • DConduct performance benchmarking against other SaaS service providers.

How the community answered

(39 responses)
  • A
    8% (3)
  • B
    5% (2)
  • C
    72% (28)
  • D
    15% (6)

Why each option

For Software as a Service (SaaS) disaster recovery, the best recommendation is to legally bind the provider to specific availability requirements within the contract.

AConduct inoremental backups of data in the SaaS environment to a local data center.

Conducting incremental backups from a SaaS environment to a local data center might not be feasible for all SaaS solutions and doesn't guarantee service availability.

BImplement segregation of duties between multiple SaaS solution providers.

Implementing segregation of duties relates to internal controls within an organization, not directly to a SaaS provider's disaster recovery capabilities.

CCodify availability requirements in the SaaS provider's contract.Correct

When using SaaS, the customer typically has limited control over the underlying infrastructure and disaster recovery processes. Therefore, the most effective way for a risk practitioner to manage DR for SaaS is to ensure that the SaaS provider's disaster recovery capabilities and expected service availability are explicitly documented and enforceable within the Service Level Agreement (SLA) or contract. This establishes clear expectations and accountability for service continuity.

DConduct performance benchmarking against other SaaS service providers.

Performance benchmarking evaluates current service quality but does not guarantee or enforce disaster recovery capabilities during an actual disaster.

Concept tested: SaaS disaster recovery contractual agreements

Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/architecture/guide/disaster-recovery/dr-considerations-saas-paas

Topics

#SaaS Risk Management#Contract Management#Third-Party Risk#Disaster Recovery

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