The answer is increased complexity in defining and managing attributes, as this represents the most significant challenge during an RBAC to ABAC migration. While RBAC relies on static role assignments that can proliferate into excessive permissions, ABAC shifts the burden to creating and governing a comprehensive set of subject, resource, and environment attributes, along with the dynamic policies that combine them. On the CISSP exam, this question tests your understanding of the fundamental trade-off between role engineering and attribute governance—a common trap is assuming the main hurdle is simply replacing roles with rules, when in fact the real difficulty lies in attribute definition and ongoing policy logic. Remember the memory tip: “Roles are static sets; attributes are dynamic nets”—the complexity moves from managing role lists to governing attribute relationships and policy combinations.
CISSP Identity and Access Management Practice Question
This CISSP practice question tests your understanding of identity and access management. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
An organization uses a role-based access control (RBAC) model. After an audit, it was discovered that users have accumulated excessive permissions due to role proliferation. The security architect proposes migrating to an attribute-based access control (ABAC) model. Which challenge is MOST likely to be encountered during this migration?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Increased complexity in defining and managing attributes.
Option D is correct because migrating from RBAC to ABAC requires defining a comprehensive set of attributes (subject, resource, environment) and the policies that combine them, which is inherently more complex than managing static role assignments. Role proliferation in RBAC often results from an attempt to mimic attribute-based decisions, but ABAC shifts the complexity from role engineering to attribute governance and policy logic, making attribute definition and management the primary challenge.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Difficulty in assigning roles to users.
Why it's wrong here
ABAC does not use roles, so role assignment is not relevant.
✗
Reduced performance due to policy evaluation overhead.
Why it's wrong here
Performance can be an issue but is not the most likely initial challenge.
✗
Lack of support for ABAC in legacy applications.
Why it's wrong here
While possible, many systems support ABAC; the primary challenge is managing attributes.
✓
Increased complexity in defining and managing attributes.
Why this is correct
ABAC policies depend on attributes; creating and maintaining them is complex.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse the operational challenge of performance (Option B) with the architectural challenge of attribute management, but CISSP emphasizes that the most significant hurdle in ABAC adoption is the complexity of defining and governing attributes, not the runtime evaluation speed.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
ABAC relies on the eXtensible Access Control Markup Language (XACML) or similar policy frameworks, where policies are written as rules over subject, resource, action, and environment attributes (e.g., user clearance, document classification, time of day). Unlike RBAC, which uses a static role hierarchy, ABAC policies can be dynamic but require a robust attribute repository (e.g., LDAP, SQL, or an identity governance system) and consistent attribute provisioning across all resources—a task that often fails due to data quality issues or lack of attribute standardization. In practice, organizations underestimate the effort to define attribute taxonomies and ensure every resource has the necessary metadata, leading to policy gaps or unintended access.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A security analyst at a medium-sized enterprise encounters this scenario during an investigation or architecture review. The correct answer reflects best practice for the specific threat or control described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Security exam questions test whether you can match controls to threats in context — not just recall definitions.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this CISSP question in full detail.
Identity and Access Management — This question tests Identity and Access Management — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Increased complexity in defining and managing attributes. — Option D is correct because migrating from RBAC to ABAC requires defining a comprehensive set of attributes (subject, resource, environment) and the policies that combine them, which is inherently more complex than managing static role assignments. Role proliferation in RBAC often results from an attempt to mimic attribute-based decisions, but ABAC shifts the complexity from role engineering to attribute governance and policy logic, making attribute definition and management the primary challenge.
What should I do if I get this CISSP question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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