SSCP Access Controls Practice Question
An organization is designing an access control policy for a new system. Which THREE of the following are fundamental principles that should be incorporated? (Choose THREE.)
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
✓
Least privilege
Least privilege, separation of duties, and need-to-know are core access control principles. Defense in depth is a security strategy, not a principle of access control itself.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Fail-open
Why it's wrong here
Fail-open is not a recommended security principle; fail-closed is preferred.
- ✓
Least privilege
Why this is correct
Users get minimum necessary permissions.
- ✓
Need-to-know
Why this is correct
Access only to data necessary for job functions.
- ✓
Separation of duties
Why this is correct
No single person has conflicting responsibilities.
- ✗
Defense in depth
Why it's wrong here
While important, it's a layered security approach, not a specific access control principle.
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.