Question 1,080 of 1,013
SY0-701 Security Architecture Practice Question
A finance workflow currently lets one employee create a payment batch and approve it in the same session. Audit findings say the design increases fraud risk. Which two access architecture changes best reduce that risk while keeping the process functional? Select two.
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse 'functional efficiency' with 'security best practices' and incorrectly choose option C, thinking that local admin rights will speed up exception handling, when in fact it violates least privilege and separation of duties.
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
✓
Split the workflow into separate creator and approver roles.
Implementing separation of duties (SoD) by splitting the payment batch creation and approval into distinct roles ensures that no single user can both create and approve a transaction. This directly mitigates the fraud risk identified in the audit by requiring collusion between two users to execute a fraudulent payment. The process remains functional because the workflow is simply reordered into two sequential steps performed by different users.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Split the workflow into separate creator and approver roles.
Why this is correct
Separating creator and approver responsibilities implements separation of duties and prevents one person from completing the full fraud-prone action alone. This preserves the workflow while requiring a second trusted person to review and approve the batch. It is a classic access architecture control for payment and procurement systems.
- ✓
Require the approver to be a different authenticated user before release.
Why this is correct
A distinct authenticated approver ensures the system verifies that a second person performs the release step. This design supports accountability and makes it much harder for a single insider to both create and authorize a payment. It is practical because the business process still works, but the high-risk step gains independent review.
- ✗
Grant all finance users local administrator rights to speed up exception handling.
Why it's wrong here
Local administrator rights are unrelated to payment approval and would broaden privilege far beyond the business need. This would increase endpoint and application risk without addressing fraud controls. The problem is authorization separation, not lack of desktop permissions.
- ✗
Store the payment password in a shared mailbox so the team can continue when someone is absent.
Why it's wrong here
Sharing passwords or secrets breaks accountability and makes it impossible to know who approved a transaction. It also violates least privilege and creates a single point of compromise. The scenario needs independent approval, not credential sharing.
- ✗
Remove approval steps entirely and rely on log reviews after payment runs.
Why it's wrong here
Detecting fraud after the fact is not a substitute for preventing it through workflow design. Log reviews are useful, but they do not stop an unauthorized payment from being released. The audit finding calls for a structural access change, not a retrospective check only.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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