Which outcome is a benefit of implementing the principle of least privilege?

• A. Reduced insider risk and accidental exposure
• B. Increased access for all users
• C. Higher system uptime
• D. More complex onboarding

Answer: (A)

The central idea is to give every user or process only the minimum rights needed to do their job. When privileges are tightly scoped, a malicious action or an accidental mistake can’t reach sensitive systems or data beyond what’s essential, so the potential damage is limited. That containment directly reduces insider risk and the chance of exposing data by mistake. It also makes it easier to audit who has what access and to adjust permissions as roles change, which strengthens overall security. Granting wider access isn’t beneficial because it raises risk, while higher uptime and more complex onboarding aren’t direct benefits of applying least privilege.