DEA-C01 Required IAM Policy Elements Practice Question
A company wants to ensure that an IAM user can only launch Amazon EC2 instances of a specific instance type. Which THREE IAM policy elements are required to define this permission? (Choose THREE.)
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
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Action
To define a permission in an IAM policy, the required elements are Effect (allow/deny), Action (e.g., ec2:RunInstances), and Resource (e.g., '*'). While a Condition can further restrict the permission (e.g., to a specific instance type), it is not mandatory. Therefore, the three required elements are Effect, Action, and Resource.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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Action
Why this is correct
Correct: The Action element specifies which AWS service actions are allowed or denied (e.g., ec2:RunInstances).
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Principal
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: The Principal element is used in resource-based policies to specify who gets the permission, but it is not required in an IAM identity-based policy.
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Effect
Why this is correct
Correct: The Effect element specifies whether the policy allows or denies the action.
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Resource
Why this is correct
Correct: The Resource element specifies the AWS resources to which the action applies. It is mandatory in an IAM policy.
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Condition
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: The Condition element is optional and used to further refine permissions based on specific conditions (e.g., ec2:InstanceType). It is not one of the three required elements.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.