SSCP Access Controls Practice Question
A security engineer is designing a system that must ensure data integrity at all costs, even if it means sacrificing availability. Which access control model and corresponding principle should be applied?
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
✓
Biba with no write-up and no read-down
Biba is a MAC model that focuses on integrity, preventing subjects from writing to higher integrity levels (no write-up) and preventing subjects from reading lower integrity levels (no read-down). This can impact availability.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Bell-LaPadula with no read-down
Why it's wrong here
Again, confidentiality focus.
- ✗
Biba with no read-up
Why it's wrong here
Biba's no read-up (read from higher integrity) is for integrity, but the primary rules are no write-up and no read-down.
- ✓
Biba with no write-up and no read-down
Why this is correct
Biba enforces no write-up (to protect higher integrity) and no read-down (to prevent corruption). This prioritizes integrity over availability.
- ✗
Bell-LaPadula with no write-up
Why it's wrong here
Bell-LaPadula focuses on confidentiality, not integrity.
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
This SSCP 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 SSCP exam.