DEA-C01 Data Security and Governance Practice Question

A data engineer manages an AWS Glue job that reads from an Amazon S3 bucket containing PII. The security team requires that the data be encrypted at rest using a customer-managed AWS KMS key, and that the engineer be able to audit key usage. The engineer has already created a KMS key. Which combination of steps should the engineer take to meet these requirements?

⚠ Common exam trap

The trap here is assuming that S3 server access logging or CloudTrail S3 data events capture KMS key usage, when only CloudTrail management events for KMS or KMS key policies provide that visibility.

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

✓

Configure the S3 bucket to use SSE-KMS with the customer-managed key, and enable AWS CloudTrail logging for KMS API calls.

SSE-KMS with a customer-managed key provides control over the encryption key and enables auditing via CloudTrail, which logs all KMS API calls. This meets both the encryption at rest and auditability requirements. Other options either use AWS-managed keys or do not provide the necessary audit detail.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

✗
Use SSE-S3 for the S3 bucket and enable S3 server access logging to track key usage.
Why it's wrong here
SSE-S3 uses AWS-managed keys, not customer-managed KMS keys, so it fails the requirement for a customer-managed key. S3 server access logs record bucket-level requests but do not provide detailed KMS key usage auditing. This option does not meet the encryption or auditing requirements.
✗
Enable default encryption on the S3 bucket with SSE-KMS using the AWS managed key aws/s3, and enable AWS CloudTrail data events for S3.
Why it's wrong here
The AWS managed key aws/s3 cannot be used for customer-managed key requirements, and its usage is not as granularly auditable as a customer-managed key. CloudTrail data events for S3 log object-level operations, not KMS key usage. This does not satisfy the need for a customer-managed key or key usage auditing.
✗
Configure the Glue job to use client-side encryption with a customer-managed KMS key, and enable AWS CloudTrail management events.
Why it's wrong here
Client-side encryption with KMS is not a native Glue feature and would require custom code. CloudTrail management events do not log KMS key usage; only data events or KMS-specific logging do. This approach is complex and does not ensure encryption at rest for all data in the bucket.
✓
Configure the S3 bucket to use SSE-KMS with the customer-managed key, and enable AWS CloudTrail logging for KMS API calls.
Why this is correct
Using SSE-KMS with a customer-managed key ensures data at rest is encrypted with that key, and CloudTrail logs all KMS API calls, providing an audit trail of key usage. This directly meets the encryption and auditing requirements. The Glue job will automatically use the key when reading and writing if permissions are granted.

Quick reference

AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison

Storage Class	Min Duration	Retrieval	Use Case
S3 Standard	None	Immediate	Frequently accessed data
S3 Standard-IA	30 days	Immediate	Infrequent access, rapid retrieval
S3 One Zone-IA	30 days	Immediate	Non-critical infrequent data
S3 Intelligent-Tiering	None	Immediate–hours	Unknown or changing access patterns
S3 Glacier Instant	90 days	Milliseconds	Archive with instant retrieval
S3 Glacier Flexible	90 days	Minutes–hours	Archive, flexible retrieval
S3 Glacier Deep Archive	180 days	Hours	Long-term compliance archive

Go deeper

DEA-C01 Data Security and Governance Practice Question

Why each option matters

Option-by-option breakdown

AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison

Related to this question