hardMultiple Choice
SSCP Practice Question: Implements a policy that the same individual…
An organization implements a policy that the same individual cannot both create a purchase order and approve it in the financial system. Which security principle does this control primarily enforce?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse separation of duties with least privilege, but least privilege only limits permissions to the minimum needed, whereas separation of duties specifically prevents a single user from executing two conflicting functions that could enable fraud or error.
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
✓
Separation of duties
Separation of duties (SoD) is the security principle that prevents a single individual from performing conflicting tasks, such as creating and approving a purchase order. By splitting these responsibilities, the organization reduces the risk of fraud, errors, and unauthorized transactions, ensuring that no single person has unchecked control over a critical financial process.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Job rotation
Why it's wrong here
Job rotation moves staff through different roles over time to broaden skills and expose fraud, but it does not prevent one person holding both duties simultaneously. Separation of duties, the actual control here, splits incompatible tasks; rotation would be chosen to limit how long one person occupies a sensitive post.
- ✗
Least privilege
Why it's wrong here
Least privilege restricts each account to the minimum access needed for its tasks; it does not by itself stop a user who legitimately holds both permissions from exercising them together. Separation of duties is the principle that splits create and approve between different people.
- ✗
Need-to-know
Why it's wrong here
Need-to-know limits access to information based on whether a person requires it for their work, governing data disclosure rather than transaction authorisation. Separation of duties is what divides the purchase-order creation and approval functions across two individuals to prevent unilateral fraud.
- ✓
Separation of duties
Why this is correct
Separation of duties splits a sensitive transaction across different people so no single individual controls it end to end. Preventing the same person from creating and approving a purchase order enforces exactly this, directly satisfying the stem's described policy control.
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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.