easyMultiple Choice
CCSP Practice Question: A cloud administrator notices that a storage…
A cloud administrator notices that a storage bucket containing sensitive data is publicly accessible. What is the most likely misconfiguration?
⚠ Common exam trap
ISC2 often tests the misconception that security features like encryption or logging directly prevent unauthorized access, when in fact access control misconfigurations (like permissive ACLs) are the root cause of public exposure.
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
✓
The bucket's ACLs are too permissive.
The most likely misconfiguration is that the bucket's ACLs are too permissive, granting public read or write access to the storage bucket. In cloud platforms like AWS S3 or Azure Blob Storage, bucket ACLs or bucket policies can be set to allow public access, which directly exposes sensitive data. Disabling logging, using server-side encryption, or enabling versioning do not inherently make a bucket publicly accessible.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The bucket has logging disabled.
Why it's wrong here
Disabled logging removes an audit trail but does not itself expose objects; the bucket policy or ACL grants public access. Logging is tempting because it is a standard security control, and enabling it would be correct if the requirement were detecting or investigating access after the fact.
- ✓
The bucket's ACLs are too permissive.
Why this is correct
Bucket ACLs grant permissions directly to individual grantees, so an overly permissive ACL exposes objects to AllUsers or AuthenticatedUsers regardless of bucket policy. This directly explains the public accessibility observed, making the ACL the likely misconfiguration.
- ✗
The bucket is using server-side encryption.
Why it's wrong here
Server-side encryption protects data at rest and has no bearing on bucket access permissions, so it cannot cause public exposure. It is tempting because encryption is a core security control, and it would be the right answer if the question asked how to protect stored objects from unauthorised reading.
- ✗
The bucket is versioned.
Why it's wrong here
Versioning preserves prior object states for recovery; it neither grants nor revokes public read access. It is tempting because versioning is a common hardening step for sensitive buckets, and it would be correct if the concern were accidental deletion or overwrite rather than anonymous exposure.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
Go deeper
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This CCSP 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 CCSP exam.