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CCSP Practice Question: Which THREE of the following are essential…
Which THREE of the following are essential characteristics of cloud computing as defined by NIST SP 800-145?
⚠ Common exam trap
ISC2 often tests the distinction between 'multi-tenancy' (a design goal) and 'resource pooling' (the NIST-defined characteristic), and between 'virtualization' (an implementation detail) and the essential characteristics, leading candidates to incorrectly select options that are common in cloud but not in the NIST definition.
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
✓
Resource pooling
Resource pooling is correct because NIST SP 800-145 defines it as one of the five essential characteristics, where the provider's computing resources are pooled to serve multiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with physical and virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according to consumer demand. This enables economies of scale and location independence, as the customer generally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of the provided resources.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Multi-tenancy
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Multi-tenancy is a common feature of public clouds but not listed as an essential characteristic by NIST.
- ✓
Resource pooling
Why this is correct
Correct. Resource pooling is one of the five essential characteristics.
- ✗
Virtualization
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. Virtualization is a technology that enables cloud computing but is not an essential characteristic.
- ✓
On-demand self-service
Why this is correct
Correct. On-demand self-service is one of the five essential characteristics.
- ✓
Measured service
Why this is correct
Correct. Measured service is one of the five essential characteristics.
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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.