DEA-C01 Data Security and Governance Practice Question
Network Topology
Refer to the exhibit. A data engineer queries AWS CloudTrail to investigate a PutObject event. What does the exhibit reveal about the object sensitive.csv?
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
✓
The object was uploaded with server-side encryption using AWS KMS.
The CloudTrail event contains `x-amz-server-side-encryption: aws:kms`, which confirms the object was uploaded with server-side encryption using AWS KMS (SSE-KMS). Option A is incorrect because the event shows a successful upload, not a failure. Option C is incorrect because the event indicates encryption was applied. Option D is incorrect because SSE-S3 would show `AES256`, not `aws:kms`.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The upload failed due to encryption mismatch.
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail logged the PutObject as successful with no errorCode or errorMessage field, so no failure occurred. It tempts because encryption-mismatch errors do appear in CloudTrail when a bucket policy demands a specific algorithm and the request supplies a different one, which is not what the exhibit shows.
- ✓
The object was uploaded with server-side encryption using AWS KMS.
Why this is correct
The CloudTrail record shows the PutObject request carried the x-amz-server-side-encryption header set to aws:kms, confirming the object was written using SSE-KMS rather than SSE-S3 or SSE-C. This satisfies the investigation's need to identify the encryption mechanism applied to sensitive.csv at upload time.
- ✗
The object was not encrypted at rest.
Why it's wrong here
The exhibit records an x-amz-server-side-encryption header, proving encryption at rest was requested, so claiming none applied misreads the log. It tempts because objects uploaded without any encryption header are indeed stored unencrypted, which is the scenario this statement would correctly describe.
- ✗
The object was encrypted with SSE-S3.
Why it's wrong here
SSE-S3 produces an x-amz-server-side-encryption header of AES256, but the exhibit shows no such header, so this claim contradicts the logged request. It tempts because SSE-S3 is the default S3 encryption applied when no algorithm is specified, and would be the answer had the event recorded that header.
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
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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.