The answer is to implement a process that disables user accounts within one hour of employee termination. This is the most effective step because the root cause was a failure in account management after employee termination—the legitimate account remained active for two weeks, allowing an attacker to use valid credentials to access the EHR system. On the Systems Security Certified Practitioner SSCP exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the identity and access management domain, specifically the critical need for timely account deprovisioning as part of the employee offboarding process. A common trap is to focus on technical controls like network segmentation or MFA, but those only mitigate misuse of an active account rather than preventing the account from being available at all. Remember the memory tip: “Terminate today, disable today—no account should outlast the paystub.”
SSCP Systems and Application Security Practice Question
This SSCP practice question tests your understanding of systems and application security. Examine the command output carefully: the correct answer depends on what the output actually shows, not on general recall alone. 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.
A healthcare organization uses an electronic health records (EHR) system that stores patient data in a relational database. The system is accessed by doctors and nurses via tablet devices on a wireless network. The security team has detected that some patient records were accessed outside of normal business hours from an IP address not belonging to the organization. The database logs show that the queries originated from the application server. The application logs indicate that the access was performed using a legitimate user account that had been disabled due to employee departure two weeks earlier. Which of the following is the most effective step to prevent recurrence?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Implement a process to disable user accounts within one hour of employee termination.
Option A is correct because disabling the account should have been immediate upon employee departure; this is a failure of the account management process. Option B is incorrect while useful, does not address the root cause of the account still being active. Option C is incorrect because network segmentation would not prevent use of a valid account. Option D is incorrect because MFA helps but if the account is still active, the attacker could have bypassed MFA if not enforced.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Require multi-factor authentication for all remote access.
Why it's wrong here
MFA is good but does not address the root cause of an active disabled account.
✗
Enable audit logging on all database transactions.
Why it's wrong here
Audit logs only detect incidents, not prevent them.
✓
Implement a process to disable user accounts within one hour of employee termination.
Why this is correct
A timely account disable process prevents use of former employees' credentials.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
✗
Segregate the wireless network from the internal network.
Why it's wrong here
Segregation would not prevent access via the application server.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
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. NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated. Security exam questions test whether you can match controls to threats in context — not just recall definitions.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related SSCP NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Systems and Application Security — This question tests Systems and Application Security — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Implement a process to disable user accounts within one hour of employee termination. — Option A is correct because disabling the account should have been immediate upon employee departure; this is a failure of the account management process. Option B is incorrect while useful, does not address the root cause of the account still being active. Option C is incorrect because network segmentation would not prevent use of a valid account. Option D is incorrect because MFA helps but if the account is still active, the attacker could have bypassed MFA if not enforced.
What should I do if I get this SSCP question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related SSCP NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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Question Discussion
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