ISC2 CC Security Principles Practice Question
A hospital's compliance officer must decide how to protect patient records. The records must remain readable only to authorized clinicians while in storage and in transit. Which security principle is the compliance officer primarily applying?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse confidentiality with integrity, because both often use encryption, but only confidentiality addresses preventing unauthorized reading rather than unauthorized changes.
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
✓
Confidentiality
Confidentiality is the security principle that prevents unauthorized disclosure of information. The scenario requires that patient records remain readable only to authorized clinicians, both at rest and in transit, which is exactly what confidentiality controls such as encryption and access control provide. The other principles address availability, proof of origin, or protection from modification, none of which is the primary requirement described.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Non-repudiation
Why it's wrong here
Non-repudiation provides proof of the origin and integrity of data so a party cannot deny an action. It is often supported by digital signatures and audit logs. The scenario does not mention proving who did what or preventing denial of actions, so non-repudiation is not the principle being applied here.
- ✗
Availability
Why it's wrong here
Availability ensures timely and reliable access to information for authorized users. While clinicians need records available, the scenario specifically asks about preventing unauthorized reading, not about uptime, redundancy, or denial-of-service protection. Therefore, availability does not address the stated requirement and is not the best answer.
- ✓
Confidentiality
Why this is correct
Confidentiality ensures information is not disclosed to unauthorized individuals, which directly matches the requirement that only authorized clinicians can read patient records. Protecting data in storage and transit through encryption and access controls is the classic application of this principle, so it is the correct choice for this scenario.
- ✗
Integrity
Why it's wrong here
Integrity ensures data is accurate, complete, and protected from unauthorized modification. The scenario focuses on keeping records readable only to authorized clinicians, not on preventing alteration. While integrity is important for patient records, it does not match the specific goal of limiting disclosure, so it is incorrect.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Security Governance and Compliance
Key term
Confidentiality
Confidentiality means keeping sensitive information secret and accessible only to authorized people or systems.
Key term
Encryption
Encryption is the process of converting readable data into a secret code to prevent unauthorized access.
About these practice questions
This CC question is part of Courseiva's 989-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. 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 ISC2 exam blueprint
This CC practice question is part of Courseiva's free ISC2 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 CC exam.