CV0-004 Security Practice Question
In the shared responsibility model, which of the following is the cloud customer responsible for?
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often confuse the responsibilities across service models. Candidates might think the provider handles OS patching in IaaS, but that's only true for PaaS or SaaS. Always remember: in IaaS, you patch the OS.
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
✓
Operating system patching on virtual machines
In the shared responsibility model, the cloud customer is responsible for security 'in' the cloud, which includes the operating system, applications, and data. For IaaS, the customer manages the guest OS, including patching, while the cloud provider manages the hypervisor, network infrastructure, and physical hardware. Therefore, operating system patching on virtual machines is the customer's responsibility.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Operating system patching on virtual machines
Why this is correct
In IaaS, the provider secures the physical hosts, hypervisor and network fabric, while the customer retains control of guest operating systems. Patching those VMs is therefore the customer's responsibility, satisfying the shared responsibility split at the OS layer.
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Network infrastructure under the hypervisor
Why it's wrong here
Network infrastructure beneath the hypervisor — physical switches, routers and virtualisation fabric — remains the provider's domain in IaaS, PaaS and SaaS. The option tempts because customers do control guest OS firewalls and security groups. It would be correct only for self-managed on-premises virtualisation.
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Hypervisor security
Why it's wrong here
Hypervisor security sits with the cloud provider, who controls the virtualisation layer beneath the customer's workloads. It is tempting because customers do secure their own guest operating systems and patched images, but the hypervisor itself remains the provider's responsibility in the shared model.
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Physical hardware maintenance
Why it's wrong here
Physical hardware maintenance sits with the cloud provider, who owns and operates the datacentre, power and cooling. Customers are tempted to claim it because on-premises estates made them wholly accountable for servers. It would be the customer's duty only in a private cloud they host themselves.
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One of 834 original CV0-004 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
This CV0-004 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA 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 CV0-004 exam.