Which of the following controls helps protect externally stored sensitive or confidential data from cyberthreats?

Externally stored sensitive or confidential data is best protected by secure configurations and access controls. Secure configuration reduces exposure from weak default settings, unnecessary services, poor encryption settings, and insecure storage permissions. Access controls restrict data access to authorized users, roles, applications, or service accounts. Vendor contracts and service organization reports are governance mechanisms, but they do not directly protect the data unless supported by operating controls. Network monitoring can detect suspicious activity, but it is primarily detective. Firewalls help with network boundary protection, but they do not fully protect externally stored data, especially in cloud or third-party environments. Internal audit should evaluate encryption, identity management, least privilege, configuration baselines, vendor controls, and monitoring. Therefore, Option A is correct.