SDSI Application Security Design Practice Question
Which design pattern best mitigates 'Broken Object Level Authorization' (BOLA) in a RESTful API?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Explicit authorization check at every endpoint that accepts an object ID
BOLA is mitigated by verifying that the authenticated identity is authorized to perform operations on the specific resource ID provided in the API request.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Explicit authorization check at every endpoint that accepts an object ID
Why this is correct
The authorization check must be enforced at the function level for every object request.
- ✗
Implementing a strong API rate limit
Why it's wrong here
Rate limiting is for availability, not access control.
- ✗
Using random, non-sequential UUIDs for objects
Why it's wrong here
This makes guessing IDs harder, but it does not fix the authorization flaw.
- ✗
Encrypting all API responses
Why it's wrong here
Encryption does not validate user authorization.
About these practice questions
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed August 2026 · checked against the official Cisco exam blueprint
This SDSI practice question is part of Courseiva's free Cisco certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the SDSI exam.