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CCSP Practice Question: A software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider hosts…
A software-as-a-service (SaaS) provider hosts customer data in a multi-tenant cloud environment. Each customer's data is stored in separate databases but shares a common infrastructure. A customer reports that they can see another customer's data in their application dashboard. The development team investigates and finds no application-level bugs. The security team suspects the issue is related to cloud data isolation. The provider uses a public cloud database service with separate schemas per customer. The database service uses shared compute resources. The provider's compliance team is concerned about data leakage between tenants. Which of the following is the MOST effective way to ensure data isolation in this environment?
⚠ Common exam trap
ISC2 often tests the misconception that encryption alone ensures data isolation, but encryption does not control access to the decrypted data once it is retrieved; the trap here is choosing application-level encryption (Option B) because it sounds security-focused, while RLS directly addresses the access control gap at the database layer.
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
✓
Implement row-level security (RLS) on the database tables to restrict access based on customer ID.
Row-level security (RLS) is the most effective because it enforces data isolation directly within the shared database engine, filtering rows based on the customer ID predicate. This prevents any cross-tenant data access even if the application layer is compromised or misconfigured, as the database itself evaluates the security policy on every query. Unlike encryption or auditing, RLS provides a deterministic access control mechanism that operates at the query execution level, ensuring that each tenant sees only their own data.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Implement row-level security (RLS) on the database tables to restrict access based on customer ID.
Why this is correct
RLS provides fine-grained access control at the row level.
- ✗
Use application-level encryption with different keys per customer.
Why it's wrong here
Encryption does not prevent access to other customers' data if queries are not restricted.
- ✗
Enable database auditing and monitor for anomalies.
Why it's wrong here
Auditing detects issues but does not prevent them.
- ✗
Move each customer to a separate database instance.
Why it's wrong here
Separate instances increase cost and complexity but provide strong isolation.
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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.