easyMultiple Choice
ISC2 CC Practice Question: A security team configures a system to record all…
A security team configures a system to record all user activities for audit purposes. Which principle is being applied?
⚠ Common exam trap
CC often tests the confusion between accountability and authentication, where candidates think logging is about verifying identity rather than attributing actions to identities.
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
✓
Accountability
Accountability is the principle that ensures individuals can be held responsible for their actions. Recording all user activities for audit purposes creates a traceable record that can be used to attribute actions to specific users, thereby enforcing accountability. This is a core objective of audit logging.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Accountability
Why this is correct
Recording all user activities creates an auditable trail linking each action to a specific identity, which is precisely what accountability requires: users can be held responsible for their actions because their activity is attributable and traceable.
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Integrity
Why it's wrong here
Integrity concerns data remaining accurate and unaltered, not the recording of who did what. Logging user activity is tempting here because audit trails protect integrity indirectly, but the principle actually applied is accountability, which attributes actions to identified subjects.
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Authentication
Why it's wrong here
Authentication verifies a subject's claimed identity at login; it does not itself record activity. It is tempting because logging depends on authenticated identities, but the principle being applied is accountability, which uses those identities to hold users answerable for their actions.
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Confidentiality
Why it's wrong here
Recording user activities for audit satisfies accountability, which logs who did what; confidentiality instead restricts data access to authorised parties. It is tempting because audit trails protect sensitive records, and confidentiality controls such as encryption or access lists are often deployed alongside logging, but they address disclosure, not activity attribution.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Key term
Audit
An audit is a systematic, independent review of IT systems, processes, and controls to verify compliance with policies, standards, and regulations.
Key term
User
A user is any person, system, or device that interacts with an IT service, resource, or identity system, typically authenticated through credentials and authorized to perform specific actions.
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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.