Are you an entry-level candidate looking for jobs in the GRC domain? It is essential to master these key interview questions.
Are you aiming to land a job in a GRC role? You’re not alone—many individuals share your aspirations to achieve their career goals. As of 2024, 26% of hiring managers seek GRC skills, making them among the most in-demand competencies. Within cybersecurity organizations, diverse functions are crucial, including the ability to “Govern, Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover.”
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GRC is one of today’s most in-demand employers, making it one of the best cybersecurity career choices, especially for entry-level positions. According to research, hiring managers and recruiters often seek entry-level positions for GRC roles across all areas of the organization.
These hiring managers seek candidates who can process information, distil logical questions, and analyze problems to meet job responsibilities.
But to get your foot in the door at one of these high-paying companies, you must first ace the difficult brain-teaser questions. So, if you are actively searching for a GRC role, here are the top 12 cyber security interview questions GRC roles for 2025, plus how to answer them appropriately, according to Infosectrain.
Table of contents
12 Screening Questions for Cybersecurity GRC Role
1. What is governance, and how does it relate to GRC?
4. How do you develop and implement a compliance program?
9. How do you communicate the results of a risk assessment to stakeholders?
10. How do you handle a non-compliance issue?
12 Screening Questions for Cybersecurity GRC Role
If you are looking for jobs in a GRC role, here are the most important interview screening questions and answers you should not miss.
1. What is governance, and how does it relate to GRC?
Answer: Governance refers to the policies, procedures, and processes that ensure an organization is managed and operated responsibly, transparently, and in alignment with its organizational cybersecurity framework.
2. A new regulatory compliance must be followed in the field in which you work. How would you get everyone in your company to comply with this requirement?
Answer: To ensure compliance with a new regulatory requirement within an organization, I would take the following steps:
- Communicate the changes and provide training.
- Update policies and procedures.
- Implement monitoring mechanisms.
- Maintain proper documentation.
- Stay informed and adapt as needed.
- Thoroughly study the new requirements.
- Assess its impact on the organization.
- Develop a compliance plan.
3. A business unit is experiencing a significant increase in data privacy-related consumer complaints. How would you investigate and address this issue from a GRC standpoint?
Answer: I would investigate and address the increase in consumer complaints related to data privacy by taking the following steps:
- Identify gaps or vulnerability assessment in data privacy controls.
- Implement corrective actions to address the issues, such as employee training, process improvements, and enhanced monitoring.
- Conduct a thorough review of data privacy policies and procedures.
- Assess data handling practices for compliance with relevant regulations.
- Regularly monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented measures to ensure ongoing compliance activities and improve customer satisfaction.
4. How do you develop and implement a compliance program?
Answer: Developing and implementing a compliance program can be complex. The following are general steps that organizations can take to develop and implement a compliance program smoothly:
- Conduct a compliance risk assessment
- Develop policies and procedures
- Communicate and train
- Monitor and internal audit
- Enforce and improve
- Implement incident management process
Read Also: I Bagged Google’s Cybersecurity Certificate for $0 Here’s How I Did It & You Can Do the Same in 2025
5. An entirely novel project involving significant technological changes is being initiated. How would you guarantee that the project adheres to regulatory requirements, GRC risk management standards and compliance frameworks?
Answer: To ensure the project aligns with regulatory requirements, risk management standards, and compliance frameworks, do the following:
- Conduct a thorough regulatory analysis to identify all relevant laws and regulations.
- Perform a detailed risk assessment to uncover potential risks and develop mitigation strategies.
- Incorporate compliance requirements into the project’s planning and design phases.
- Establish robust controls and monitoring mechanisms to ensure continuous compliance.
- Collaborate with key stakeholders, including legal, compliance, and risk management teams throughout the project lifecycle to address any compliance concerns effectively.
6. A cyberattack has compromised sensitive information in the organization. What steps would you take to evaluate the impact, mitigate the risks, and ensure compliance with applicable data protection regulations?
Answer: In the event of a cyber attacks compromising sensitive customer data, the following steps should be taken to evaluate the impact, mitigate risks, potential threat and ensure compliance with relevant data protection regulations:
- Activate the incident response plan: Quickly initiate predefined procedures to manage the security incidents effectively.
- Assess the scope and impact: Identify the extent of the breach and determine the type of sensitive data compromised.
- Notify relevant stakeholders: Inform internal teams, legal counsel, and senior management about the emerging threats and the incident.
- Engage forensic experts: Involve cybersecurity professionals in investigating the breach, unauthorized access and identifying its source.
- Mitigate immediate risks: Contain the breach to prevent further damage.
- Conduct a risk assessment: Evaluate the risks posed to affected individuals and the organization.
- Implement remedial measures: Strengthen controls for security vulnerabilities to address those exploited in the attack.
- Review and update data protection policies: Ensure policies are aligned with grc practices and regulations.
- Communicate with customers and stakeholders: Provide timely and transparent updates to affected individuals and key parties.
- Collaborate with regulatory authorities: Report the breach as applicable data protection laws require.
- Conduct a post-incident review: Analyze the response to identify areas for improvement.
- Monitor and audit for ongoing compliance: Regularly review security measures and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework to prevent future breaches.
7. A security breach has been discovered at a third-party vendor that your company relies on for vital services. How would you manage the risks associated with this incident and ensure that the vendor complies with all security standards?
Answer: To manage risks associated with a third-party vendor’s security breach and ensure compliance with security standards, take the following steps:
- Activate the incident response plan: Engage internal and external stakeholders to address the situation effectively.
- Assess the impact: Evaluate how the breach affects our organization, including any potential exposure of customer data.
- Collaborate with the vendor: Work closely with the vendor to investigate the incident, grc processes , identify vulnerabilities, and implement corrective measures.
- Audit the vendor’s security practices: Conduct a thorough review of the vendor’s adherence to relevant security audit standards.
- Strengthen controls: Establish robust security controls and compliance monitoring mechanisms to improve vendor management and mitigate future risks.
8. Can you provide an example of a project you have led related to governance, risk management, or compliance?
Answer: One example of a project I have led related to governance, risk management, and compliance is implementing a third-party vendor risk management program. This project involved the following steps:
- Define the scope: Identify all third-party vendors the organization works with and the specific risks associated with each vendor’s risk tolerance
- Develop a vendor risk assessment process: Create a process to evaluate risks, including assessments of vendors’ security threats and controls, business continuity plans, and compliance with regulatory requirements.
- Conduct vendor risk assessments: Apply the risk assessment process to evaluate the risks associated with each vendor.
- Prioritize risks: Rank risks based on their likelihood and potential impact, focusing on those with the highest priority.
- Develop a risk management plan: Create a plan that outlines response strategies for prioritized risks, such as risk avoidance, reduction, transfer, or acceptance.
- Implement the risk management plan: Execute the plan, including risk response strategies and any necessary controls to mitigate identified risks.
- Monitor and review: Regularly review the risks associated with each vendor and evaluate the effectiveness of the risk management plan to ensure ongoing risk mitigation.
This project required close coordination with various internal departments and collaboration with third-party vendors to ensure compliance with all requirements. It also emphasized clear communication to ensure all stakeholders knew the risks and the risk management strategies.
9. How do you communicate the results of a risk assessment to stakeholders?
Answer: To communicate the results of a risk assessment effectively to stakeholders, consider the following steps:
- Prepare a clear and concise report: Include an overview of the risk assessment process, key findings, and recommendations for risk management.
- Use visual aids: Leverage charts, graphs, and diagrams to present the results in an easily digestible format.
- Tailor the presentation to the audience: Adapt the level of detail based on the audience’s expertise—technical teams may need in-depth analysis. At the same time, non-technical stakeholders may prefer a high-level summary.
- Use plain language: Avoid jargon and technical terms; communicate in simple, straightforward language that all stakeholders can understand.
- Provide context: Explain how identified risks relate to the organization’s goals and their potential impact if not addressed.
- Encourage questions and feedback: Create opportunities for stakeholders to ask questions and provide insights on mitigating the risks.
- Follow-up: Ensure stakeholders understand the findings by addressing concerns or questions after the presentation.
It’s also crucial to have a dedicated team or individual responsible for communicating the results promptly and in a way that aligns with the audience’s needs.
10. How do you handle a non-compliance issue?
Answer: Handling a non-compliance issue is critical to governance, risk management, and compliance. The following steps can guide the process:
- Investigate the issue: Conduct a thorough investigation to understand the cause and extent of the non-compliance.
- Identify the root cause: Determine whether the issue stems from inadequate policies, procedures, controls, or failure to follow established processes.
- Develop a plan of action: Create a detailed plan to address the non-compliance and prevent future occurrences. The plan should include specific actions, timelines, and assigned responsibilities.
- Communicate the plan: As required, share the action plan with all relevant stakeholders, including employees, management, and regulatory authorities.
- Implement the plan: Execute the corrective actions, including necessary updates to policies, procedures, and controls.
- Monitor and review: Continuously evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented actions to ensure the issue is resolved and the risk of recurrence is minimized.
- Report as required: If necessary, promptly report the non-compliance issue to appropriate regulatory authorities.
It is essential to handle non-compliance issues promptly and transparently, and with a focus on prevention. For serious or high-impact cases, involve senior management and/or legal counsel to ensure proper resolution.
11. We have received a whistleblower complaint about possible fraud in one of our departments. How would you approach it so that an unbiased investigation could be conducted while also maintaining confidentiality and preventing reprisal?
Answer: To address a whistleblower complaint regarding potential fraud in a department, consider the following steps:
- Treat the complaint seriously: Initiate an impartial and thorough investigation to properly examine all allegations.
- Maintain confidentiality: Protect the whistleblower’s identity by implementing strict confidentiality measures.
- Prevent retaliation: Enforce robust anti-retaliation policies to safeguard the whistleblower from reprisal.
- Conduct a detailed investigation: Engage relevant stakeholders and, if necessary, forensic experts to gather evidence and analyze the situation comprehensively.
- Take corrective action: Based on the findings, implement appropriate disciplinary or remedial measures, ensuring transparency and compliance with legal and organizational standards.
12. A new business opportunity necessitates forming a partnership with a company in a high-risk jurisdiction infamous for corruption. How would you evaluate the associated risks and design a compliance framework to mitigate those risks?
Answer: To evaluate and mitigate risks when forming a partnership in a high-risk jurisdiction known for corruption, the following would help:
- Conduct comprehensive due diligence: Assess the potential partner’s reputation, financial stability, compliance history, and business practices.
- Engage legal and compliance experts: Analyze the local legal and regulatory environment to identify potential risks and requirements.
- Develop a robust compliance framework: Create and implement anti-corruption policies, employee and partner training programs, and stringent monitoring mechanisms.
- Establish clear contractual safeguards: Include provisions in the partnership agreement to mitigate corruption risks, such as audit rights and termination clauses for non-compliance.
- Implement ongoing monitoring and auditing: Regularly review compliance practices and conduct audits to detect and address irregularities proactively.