- A
Least privilege
Why wrong: Least privilege grants users only the permissions necessary to perform their job, but the policy here is about splitting tasks between individuals, not just minimizing permissions.
- B
Separation of duties
Separation of duties ensures that no single individual has control over all phases of a critical transaction, reducing the risk of fraud or error.
- C
Defense in depth
Why wrong: Defense in depth involves multiple layers of security controls (e.g., firewall, antivirus, encryption), not the division of responsibilities within a process.
- D
Mandatory access control
Why wrong: Mandatory access control relies on system-enforced labels and clearances, not on dividing functional roles.
Question 214 of 1,152
SY0-701 General Security Concepts Practice Question
This SY0-701 practice question tests your understanding of general security concepts. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A security auditor is reviewing the access controls for a payroll application. The auditor discovers that a single user, the payroll manager, has permissions to both create new employee records and then approve and process salary payments for those records. The company's security policy requires that no single individual should be able to execute both the creation and the approval of a payment for the same employee. Which of the following security principles is the company's policy attempting to enforce?
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
✓
Separation of duties
The company's policy prohibits a single user from both creating employee records and approving payments for them, which is a classic application of separation of duties. This principle ensures that no single individual has the authority to execute two conflicting or sensitive tasks that could lead to fraud or error, such as creating a fictitious employee and then approving a salary payment to that employee. In the context of a payroll application, separation of duties requires distinct roles or users for record creation and payment approval to enforce checks and balances.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Least privilege
Why it's wrong here
Least privilege grants users only the permissions necessary to perform their job, but the policy here is about splitting tasks between individuals, not just minimizing permissions.
When this WOULD be correct
A question where a user has more permissions than needed for their job role, such as a help desk technician having administrative rights to modify system files. The correct answer would be least privilege because the policy aims to restrict permissions to only those required.
- ✓
Separation of duties
Why this is correct
Separation of duties ensures that no single individual has control over all phases of a critical transaction, reducing the risk of fraud or error.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Defense in depth
Why it's wrong here
Defense in depth involves multiple layers of security controls (e.g., firewall, antivirus, encryption), not the division of responsibilities within a process.
When this WOULD be correct
A company implements firewalls, intrusion detection, antivirus, and access controls to protect a network. An auditor asks which security principle this layered approach represents. The correct answer would be defense in depth.
- ✗
Mandatory access control
Why it's wrong here
Mandatory access control relies on system-enforced labels and clearances, not on dividing functional roles.
When this WOULD be correct
A question where a system uses security labels (e.g., Top Secret, Secret) to enforce access based on user clearance and data classification, and the policy requires that users cannot change labels or override system-enforced rules. For example: 'A military system requires that only users with a Top Secret clearance can read Top Secret documents, and the system enforces this automatically.'
Option-by-option analysis
Why each answer is right or wrong
Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The SY0-701 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.
✓Separation of dutiesCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
Separation of duties ensures that no single individual has control over all phases of a critical transaction, reducing the risk of fraud or error.
✗Least privilegeWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
The policy specifically targets preventing a single user from performing both creation and approval of payments, which is the core of separation of duties, not least privilege. Least privilege would limit permissions to only what is necessary for a role, but here the issue is conflicting duties.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A question where a user has more permissions than needed for their job role, such as a help desk technician having administrative rights to modify system files. The correct answer would be least privilege because the policy aims to restrict permissions to only those required.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse 'least privilege' with 'separation of duties' because both involve limiting user permissions, but they address different risks: least privilege reduces overall access, while separation of duties prevents fraud by splitting conflicting tasks.
✗Defense in depthWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Defense in depth is a layered security strategy using multiple controls, not a principle preventing a single user from performing conflicting duties. The scenario describes a conflict of interest, not a lack of multiple security layers.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A company implements firewalls, intrusion detection, antivirus, and access controls to protect a network. An auditor asks which security principle this layered approach represents. The correct answer would be defense in depth.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse 'separation of duties' with 'defense in depth' because both involve multiple layers or checks, but defense in depth focuses on overlapping controls rather than dividing responsibilities among individuals.
✗Mandatory access controlWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Mandatory access control (MAC) is a model where access decisions are based on system-enforced labels (e.g., security clearance), not on preventing a single user from performing conflicting tasks. The policy described is about separating duties, not about label-based access.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A question where a system uses security labels (e.g., Top Secret, Secret) to enforce access based on user clearance and data classification, and the policy requires that users cannot change labels or override system-enforced rules. For example: 'A military system requires that only users with a Top Secret clearance can read Top Secret documents, and the system enforces this automatically.'
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse 'separation of duties' with 'mandatory access control' because both involve restrictions, but MAC is about label-based enforcement, not about splitting conflicting tasks among multiple users.
Analysis generated from the official SY0-701blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse separation of duties with least privilege, but the key distinction is that separation of duties focuses on dividing conflicting tasks among multiple users to prevent fraud, while least privilege focuses on limiting permissions to the minimum needed for a single user's role.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Separation of duties is often implemented through role-based access control (RBAC) with mutually exclusive roles, where a user assigned to one role cannot be assigned to a conflicting role. In a payroll system, this might be enforced by access control lists (ACLs) or application-level logic that checks the user's role before allowing payment approval, ensuring that the creator of a record cannot also be the approver. Real-world compliance frameworks like SOX or PCI DSS mandate separation of duties for financial systems to prevent insider threats and ensure audit trails.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A security analyst at a medium-sized enterprise encounters this scenario during an investigation or architecture review. The correct answer reflects best practice for the specific threat or control described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Security exam questions test whether you can match controls to threats in context — not just recall definitions.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SY0-701 question test?
General Security Concepts — This question tests General Security Concepts — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Separation of duties — The company's policy prohibits a single user from both creating employee records and approving payments for them, which is a classic application of separation of duties. This principle ensures that no single individual has the authority to execute two conflicting or sensitive tasks that could lead to fraud or error, such as creating a fictitious employee and then approving a salary payment to that employee. In the context of a payroll application, separation of duties requires distinct roles or users for record creation and payment approval to enforce checks and balances.
What should I do if I get this SY0-701 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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