CCSP Cloud Platform and Infrastructure Security Practice Question
In a Kubernetes cluster, a pod needs to access a cloud provider's key management service (KMS) to retrieve secrets. Which of the following RBAC configurations is the least privileged approach?
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
✓
Create a Role in the pod's namespace that allows get on secrets and bind it to the pod's service account
The least privileged approach is to grant only the necessary API permissions to the service account used by the pod, not to users or namespaces unnecessarily.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Bind a ClusterRole with get and list on secrets to the pod's service account
Why it's wrong here
ClusterRole grants access across all namespaces; more than needed.
- ✓
Create a Role in the pod's namespace that allows get on secrets and bind it to the pod's service account
Why this is correct
Correct: Namespace-scoped Role limited to get on secrets is least privilege.
- ✗
Grant the pod's service account cluster-admin rights
Why it's wrong here
Overly permissive.
- ✗
Use a PodSecurityPolicy that allows privileged containers
Why it's wrong here
PodSecurityPolicy controls security context, not RBAC for secrets.
Quick reference
Access Control Model Comparison
| Model | Acronym | Who Controls Access? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discretionary Access Control | DAC | Resource owner | Small teams, file shares |
| Mandatory Access Control | MAC | System / security labels | Classified govt / military |
| Role-Based Access Control | RBAC | Administrator (via roles) | Enterprise environments |
| Attribute-Based Access Control | ABAC | Policy engine (user + resource attributes) | Fine-grained, dynamic policies |
| Rule-Based Access Control | RuBAC | System rules / ACLs | Firewall rules, network ACLs |
Go deeper
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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