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ISC2 CC Practice Question: A security manager is designing a policy to…
A security manager is designing a policy to prevent one person from both approving and disbursing payments. Which principle is being applied?
⚠ Common exam trap
ISC2 often tests separation of duties by pairing it with 'least privilege' in the same question, and the trap is that candidates confuse the two because both limit access, but separation of duties specifically prevents conflicting task combinations, not just reducing permissions.
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
Separation of duties ensures that no single individual has control over two or more phases of a critical transaction, such as both approving and disbursing payments. By splitting these responsibilities, the organization reduces the risk of fraud or error because collusion between two or more people would be required to bypass controls. In payment systems, this is often enforced through dual-authorization workflows in ERP or financial management software.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Separation of duties
Why this is correct
Separation of duties splits critical tasks between different people so no single individual controls an entire transaction. Requiring separate approvers and disbursers satisfies the stem's constraint, preventing fraud or error, unlike least privilege or job rotation.
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Need to know
Why it's wrong here
Need to know limits access to information required for a task, not the combination of duties within a transaction. It tempts because both concepts restrict users, but separation of duties splits the approving and disbursing functions between different people, which need to know does not address.
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Least privilege
Why it's wrong here
Least privilege grants only the permissions a role requires; it does not forbid one person holding two legitimate roles. It tempts because both limit excess access, yet separation of duties specifically requires the approving and disbursing duties be assigned to different individuals.
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Defense in depth
Why it's wrong here
Defense in depth layers independent controls so one failure does not compromise the system; it does not mandate splitting duties between people. It tempts because both strengthen security posture, but the scenario's requirement is that no single person both approves and disburses, which is separation of duties.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Risk Management and Security Controls
Key term
Policy
A policy is a set of rules or guidelines that defines how an organization manages, secures, and operates its IT systems and services.
Key term
Separation of duties
Separation of duties is a security principle that splits critical tasks and privileges among multiple people to prevent fraud, errors, and abuse of power.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.