CompTIA Cloud+ Practice Test

What is the primary objective of a Role-based access control system?

1. Assigning access based on user’s security clearances

2. Allowing users to define their own roles

3. Providing unrestricted access to administrators

4. Automating access control without user input

The correct answer is: Assigning access based on user’s security clearances

The primary objective of a Role-based Access Control (RBAC) system is to assign access based on a user's roles within an organization, which closely relates to their responsibilities and security clearance levels. In RBAC, access rights are not assigned to individual users but rather to roles that users can be assigned to. This means that if a certain user requires specific permissions to perform their job functions, they are assigned to a role that has those permissions. This system streamlines the management of access rights, ensuring that individuals only have the permissions necessary to perform their tasks, thereby enhancing security and compliance. It also simplifies the administration of user privileges; when a user's role changes, their access can be updated by simply changing their role without the need to modify individual access rights for each user. The other options do not accurately reflect the fundamental purpose of RBAC. Allowing users to define their own roles is not typical of RBAC systems, as roles are usually predefined by administrators to maintain control over access levels. Providing unrestricted access to administrators contradicts the principle of least privilege that RBAC aims to enforce. Lastly, while automation in access control can exist within RBAC systems, the core aim is focused on role assignment rather than complete automation without user input.