IAPP CIPM Practice Exams
Last updated on Oct 22,2026- Exam Code: CIPM
- Exam Name: Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM)
- Certification Provider: IAPP
- Latest update: Oct 22,2026
Which of the following is NOT an important factor to consider when developing a data retention policy?
- A . Technology resource.
- B . Business requirement.
- C . Organizational culture.
- D . Compliance requirement
There are different forms of monitoring available for organizations to consider when aligning with their privacy program goals.
Which of the following forms of monitoring is best described as ‘auditing’?
- A . Evaluating operations, systems, and processes.
- B . Tracking, reporting and documenting complaints from all sources.
- C . Assisting in the completion of attesting reporting for SOC2, ISO, or BS7799.
- D . Ensuring third parties have appropriate security and privacy requirements in place.
Which of the following is the most likely way an independent privacy organization might work to promote sound privacy practices?
- A . By developing principles for self-regulation.
- B . By enacting new legislation.
- C . By completing on-site audits.
- D . By issuing penalties for violations of rules.
What is the main purpose of a privacy program audit?
- A . To mitigate the effects of a privacy breach.
- B . To justify a privacy department budget increase.
- C . To make decisions on privacy staff roles and responsibilities.
- D . To ensure the adequacy of data protection procedures.
What is the name for the privacy strategy model that describes delegated decision making?
- A . De-centralized.
- B . De-functionalized.
- C . Hybrid.
- D . Matrix.
SCENARIO
Please use the following to answer the next QUESTION:
For 15 years, Albert has worked at Treasure Box C a mail order company in the United States (U.S.) that used to sell decorative candles around the world, but has recently decided to limit its shipments to customers in the 48 contiguous states. Despite his years of experience, Albert is often overlooked for managerial positions. His frustration about not being promoted, coupled with his recent interest in issues of privacy protection, have motivated Albert to be an agent of positive change.
He will soon interview for a newly advertised position, and during the interview, Albert plans on making executives aware of lapses in the company’s privacy program. He feels certain he will be rewarded with a promotion for preventing negative consequences resulting from the company’s outdated policies and procedures.
For example, Albert has learned about the AICPA (American Institute of Certified Public Accountans)/CICA (Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants) Privacy Maturity Model (PMM). Albert thinks the model is a useful way to measure Treasure Box’s ability to protect personal data. Albert has noticed that Treasure Box fails to meet the requirements of the highest level of maturity of this model; at his interview, Albert will pledge to assist the company with meeting this level in order to provide customers with the most rigorous security available.
Albert does want to show a positive outlook during his interview. He intends to praise the company’s commitment to the security of customer and employee personal data against external threats. However, Albert worries about the high turnover rate within the company, particularly in the area of direct phone marketing. He sees many unfamiliar faces every day who are hired to do the marketing, and he often hears complaints in the lunch room regarding long hours and low pay, as well as what seems to be flagrant disregard for company procedures.
In addition, Treasure Box has had two recent security incidents. The company has responded to the incidents with internal audits and updates to security safeguards. However, profits still seem to be affected and anecdotal evidence indicates that many people still harbor mistrust. Albert wants to help the company recover. He knows there is at least one incident the public in unaware of, although Albert does not know the details. He believes the company’s insistence on keeping the incident a secret could be a further detriment to its reputation. One further way that Albert wants to help Treasure Box regain its stature is by creating a toll-free number for customers, as well as a more efficient procedure for responding to customer concerns by postal mail.
In addition to his suggestions for improvement, Albert believes that his knowledge of the company’s recent business maneuvers will also impress the interviewers. For example, Albert is aware of the company’s intention to acquire a medical supply company in the coming weeks.
With his forward thinking, Albert hopes to convince the managers who will be interviewing him that he is right for the job.
In consideration of the company’s new initiatives, which of the following laws and regulations would be most appropriate for Albert to mention at the interview as a priority concern for the privacy team?
- A . Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA)
- B . The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
- C . The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
- D . Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
Which of the following is an example of Privacy by Design (PbD)?
- A . A company hires a professional to structure a privacy program that anticipates the increasing demands of new laws.
- B . The human resources group develops a training program for employees to become certified in privacy policy.
- C . A labor union insists that the details of employers’ data protection methods be documented in a new contract.
- D . The information technology group uses privacy considerations to inform the development of new networking software.
SCENARIO
Please use the following to answer the next QUESTION:
It’s just what you were afraid of. Without consulting you, the information technology director at your organization launched a new initiative to encourage employees to use personal devices for conducting business. The initiative made purchasing a new, high-specification laptop computer an attractive option, with discounted laptops paid for as a payroll deduction spread over a year of paychecks. The organization is also paying the sales taxes. It’s a great deal, and after a month, more than half the organization’s employees have signed on and acquired new laptops. Walking through the facility, you see them happily customizing and comparing notes on their new computers, and at the end of the day, most take their laptops with them, potentially carrying personal data to their homes or other unknown locations. It’s enough to give you data- protection nightmares, and you’ve pointed out to the information technology Director and many others in the organization the potential hazards of this new practice, including the inevitability of eventual data loss or theft.
Today you have in your office a representative of the organization’s marketing department who shares with you, reluctantly, a story with potentially serious consequences. The night before, straight from work, with laptop in hand, he went to the Bull and Horn Pub to play billiards with his friends. A fine night of sport and socializing began, with the laptop "safely" tucked on a bench, beneath his jacket. Later that night, when it was time to depart, he retrieved the jacket, but the laptop was gone. It was not beneath the bench or on another bench nearby. The waitstaff had not seen it. His friends were not playing a joke on him. After a sleepless night, he confirmed it this morning, stopping by the pub to talk to the cleanup crew. They had not found it. The laptop was missing. Stolen, it seems. He looks at you, embarrassed and upset.
You ask him if the laptop contains any personal data from clients, and, sadly, he nods his head, yes. He believes it contains files on about 100 clients, including names, addresses and governmental identification numbers. He sighs and places his head in his hands in despair.
Which is the best way to ensure that data on personal equipment is protected?
- A . User risk training.
- B . Biometric security.
- C . Encryption of the data.
- D . Frequent data backups.
In addition to regulatory requirements and business practices, what important factors must a global privacy strategy consider?
- A . Monetary exchange.
- B . Geographic features.
- C . Political history.
- D . Cultural norms.
SCENARIO
Please use the following to answer the next QUESTION:
As the Director of data protection for Consolidated Records Corporation, you are justifiably pleased with your accomplishments so far. Your hiring was precipitated by warnings from regulatory agencies following a series of relatively minor data breaches that could easily have been worse. However, you have not had a reportable incident for the three years that you have been with the company. In fact, you consider your program a model that others in the data storage industry may note in their own program development.
You started the program at Consolidated from a jumbled mix of policies and procedures and worked toward coherence across departments and throughout operations. You were aided along the way by the program’s sponsor, the vice president of operations, as well as by a Privacy Team that started from a clear understanding of the need for change.
Initially, your work was greeted with little confidence or enthusiasm by the company’s "old guard" among both the executive team and frontline personnel working with data and interfacing with clients. Through the use of metrics that showed the costs not only of the breaches that had occurred, but also projections of the costs that easily could occur given the current state of operations, you soon had the leaders and key decision-makers largely on your side. Many of the other employees were more resistant, but face-to-face meetings with each department and the development of a baseline privacy training program achieved sufficient "buy-in" to begin putting the proper procedures into place.
Now, privacy protection is an accepted component of all current operations involving personal or protected data and must be part of the end product of any process of technological development. While your approach is not systematic, it is fairly effective.
You are left contemplating:
What must be done to maintain the program and develop it beyond just a data breach prevention
program? How can you build on your success?
What are the next action steps?
What analytic can be used to track the financial viability of the program as it develops?
- A . Cost basis.
- B . Gap analysis.
- C . Return to investment.
- D . Breach impact modeling.