Skip to content

Interview question · Identity, OAuth & Access Control

When should an agent's action require step-up authentication, and how do you implement it?

A confirmation click proves someone was present; step-up proves it was the user, recently. The scored answer decides which actions need it and wires it through tokens so the agent cannot fake it.

hardNewPreparation tags: Microsoft, Google, JPMorgan ChaseUpdated Nov 2026

A confirmation click proves someone was present; step-up proves it was the user, recently. The scored answer decides which actions need it and wires it through tokens so the agent cannot fake it.

Make your first attempt

What would you say before reading the answer?

  1. 01 State the assumptions your answer depends on.
  2. 02 Explain the mechanism and choose a control.
  3. 03 Name a condition that would change your decision.

The worked answer includes an approach, scoring criteria and follow-up questions. Compare the reasoning with your own.

10 answers per topic instead of 5, plus saved progress and bookmarks · costs nothingor unlock all 529 remaining answers · $25

Every worked answer in all 17 topics, every lesson in every course, the full concept curriculum, the complete practice-test bank, and the downloadable security field guides.

6 months · One payment · No auto-renewal

What if · the follow-ups in this answer

The answer works through 6 follow-ups like an interviewer would

An AI agent in a banking app can initiate payments for a user after chatting with them, and currently asks 'shall I proceed?' in the chat.

  1. Why is a chat confirmation not enough?
  2. When should step-up be required?
  3. How should step-up be implemented?
  4. What should the user see when approving?
  5. What if the agent is manipulated into asking repeatedly?
  6. How would you design payment approval for the agent?

Each rung has a nudge, a model answer, the principle that carries over and the weak answer to avoid. Premium opens every answer and ladder.

UP NEXT ON YOUR JOURNEY
DISCUSSION · 0

No comments yet. Share a correction or a different way to answer it.