This DEA-C01 practice question tests your understanding of data store management. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 uses Amazon S3 to store sensitive data. The security team requires that all data be encrypted at rest using a customer-managed key that is rotated annually. Which encryption option should be used?
SSE-KMS (Server-Side Encryption with AWS KMS).
Allows customer-managed KMS key with annual rotation.
SSE-S3 (Server-Side Encryption with S3-managed keys).
Why wrong: Keys are managed by AWS, not customer.
Client-side encryption.
Why wrong: Encryption is done by the client, not AWS.
SSE-C (Server-Side Encryption with Customer-Provided keys).
Why wrong: Keys are provided by customer but rotation is complex.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
SSE-KMS (Server-Side Encryption with AWS KMS).
SSE-KMS is the correct choice because it allows you to use a customer-managed key (CMK) in AWS KMS, which you can configure to rotate automatically on an annual schedule. This satisfies the security team's requirement for encryption at rest with a key you control and rotate yearly, while still leveraging server-side encryption that integrates with S3's existing infrastructure.
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.
SSE-KMS (Server-Side Encryption with AWS KMS).
Why this is correct
Allows customer-managed KMS key with annual rotation.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
SSE-S3 (Server-Side Encryption with S3-managed keys).
Why it's wrong here
Keys are managed by AWS, not customer.
Client-side encryption.
Why it's wrong here
Encryption is done by the client, not AWS.
SSE-C (Server-Side Encryption with Customer-Provided keys).
Why it's wrong here
Keys are provided by customer but rotation is complex.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse SSE-C with customer-managed keys, but SSE-C requires you to supply the key on every operation and does not support AWS-managed rotation, making it unsuitable for the 'rotated annually' requirement.
Detailed technical explanation
SSE-KMS uses envelope encryption: S3 sends a GenerateDataKey request to AWS KMS to obtain a data key encrypted under your CMK, then encrypts the object with that data key and stores the encrypted data key alongside the object. When you enable automatic key rotation on a symmetric CMK, AWS KMS rotates the backing key annually (or on a custom schedule), but the old data keys remain decryptable because KMS maintains previous backing key versions. This means objects encrypted before a rotation remain accessible without re-encryption, which is critical for long-term archival compliance.
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: SSE-KMS (Server-Side Encryption with AWS KMS). — SSE-KMS is the correct choice because it allows you to use a customer-managed key (CMK) in AWS KMS, which you can configure to rotate automatically on an annual schedule. This satisfies the security team's requirement for encryption at rest with a key you control and rotate yearly, while still leveraging server-side encryption that integrates with S3's existing infrastructure.
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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