SSCP Security Operations and Administration Practice Question
An organization wants to ensure that all new servers are deployed with a hardened baseline configuration. Which of the following is the most effective control to enforce this?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates choose post-deployment reviews or vulnerability scans because they seem like thorough security measures, but the question specifically asks for the most effective control to *enforce* a hardened baseline, which requires a preventive, automated approach rather than a reactive or manual one.
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
✓
Using a configuration management tool to deploy a hardened image automatically
Using a configuration management tool (e.g., Ansible, Puppet, Chef) to deploy a hardened image automatically ensures that every new server is built from a pre-defined, secure baseline without relying on manual steps. This enforces consistency and prevents configuration drift from the moment of deployment, which is the most effective control for ensuring compliance with hardening standards.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Requiring post-deployment security reviews for each server
Why it's wrong here
A post-deployment review identifies weaknesses only after the server is already running in production, leaving an exposure window. It is tempting because security reviews provide assurance and sign-off, and a review would be the right choice when the requirement is independent verification of an already-built system before it handles sensitive data.
- ✓
Using a configuration management tool to deploy a hardened image automatically
Why this is correct
Automated configuration management enforces the hardened baseline consistently across every new server, removing manual drift. Deploying a hardened image automatically satisfies the stem's requirement for guaranteed baseline configuration at deployment, unlike documentation or manual checklists.
- ✗
Requiring administrators to manually apply CIS benchmarks after installation
Why it's wrong here
Manual application depends on each administrator's diligence and consistency, so drift and omissions are inevitable across many builds. It is tempting because CIS benchmarks are the recognised hardening standard, and manual application would be correct for a small, one-off legacy server that no automation tooling can reach.
- ✗
Performing periodic vulnerability scans on all servers
Why it's wrong here
Scanning detects missing patches or deviations after deployment, but cannot prevent an unhardened server from going live. It is tempting because vulnerability management is a core control, and periodic scanning would be the right choice when the requirement is ongoing detection of weaknesses across an existing estate.
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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.