This DEA-C01 practice question tests your understanding of data store management. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A company is storing sensitive user data in an Amazon S3 bucket. The security team requires that all data be encrypted at rest using a customer-managed key stored in AWS KMS. The bucket policy must deny any PUT request that does not include the appropriate encryption header. Which bucket policy condition key should be used?
s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id
This condition key allows requiring a specific KMS key ID for encryption.
s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption
Why wrong: This condition key only checks if SSE is enabled, not the specific KMS key.
s3:x-amz-acl
Why wrong: This condition key controls ACLs, not encryption.
aws:SourceArn
Why wrong: This condition key restricts the source ARN, not encryption.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id
Option A is correct because the `s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id` condition key allows the bucket policy to enforce that PUT requests include a specific customer-managed KMS key ID in the `x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id` header, ensuring encryption at rest with the required key. This directly meets the security team's requirement to deny PUT requests that lack the appropriate encryption header tied to a customer-managed KMS key.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id
Why this is correct
This condition key allows requiring a specific KMS key ID for encryption.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption
Why it's wrong here
This condition key only checks if SSE is enabled, not the specific KMS key.
s3:x-amz-acl
Why it's wrong here
This condition key controls ACLs, not encryption.
aws:SourceArn
Why it's wrong here
This condition key restricts the source ARN, not encryption.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse `s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption` (which only checks the encryption algorithm, not the key) with `s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id` (which checks the specific KMS key ID), leading them to pick option B when the requirement explicitly demands a customer-managed key.
Detailed technical explanation
Under the hood, the `s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id` condition key evaluates the exact KMS key ID or alias ARN provided in the request header, allowing policies to enforce use of a specific customer-managed key (CMK) while rejecting requests that omit the header or use a different key. This is critical for compliance scenarios (e.g., PCI DSS, HIPAA) where the customer must retain control of the encryption key and cannot rely on AWS-managed keys. A subtle behavior is that the condition key can also be used with a wildcard to allow any customer-managed key, but the exam scenario specifically requires a customer-managed key, not just any KMS key.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
What to study next
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FAQ
Data Store Management — This question tests Data Store Management — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id — Option A is correct because the `s3:x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id` condition key allows the bucket policy to enforce that PUT requests include a specific customer-managed KMS key ID in the `x-amz-server-side-encryption-aws-kms-key-id` header, ensuring encryption at rest with the required key. This directly meets the security team's requirement to deny PUT requests that lack the appropriate encryption header tied to a customer-managed KMS key.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
This DEA-C01 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Amazon Web Services 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 DEA-C01 exam.
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