Audit Data Gathering: Sampling, Questionnaires, Interviews, Assertions, and Reference Sources (5.5)

This episode explains how audits and assessments gather evidence to determine whether controls, processes, and security requirements are working as expected. Students should understand sampling as reviewing a representative portion of records or systems rather than every item, while questionnaires and interviews help collect information from control owners, administrators, users, and stakeholders. Assertions are claims about control design, operation, or compliance that must be supported by evidence. Reference sources such as MITRE ATT&CK, the Cyber Kill Chain, and the Diamond Model help organize attacker behavior, incident analysis, and assessment context. For Security+ scenarios, the focus is on gathering reliable evidence, validating claims, and using structured sources to support defensible conclusions. Produced by BareMetalCyber.com, where you’ll find more cyber audio courses, books, and information to strengthen your educational path. Also, if you want to stay up to date with the latest news, visit DailyCyber.News for a newsletter you can use, and a daily podcast you can commute with. And dont forget Cyberauthor.me for the companion study guide and flash cards!