- A
Use AWS KMS customer managed keys (SSE-KMS) with automatic key rotation enabled.
KMS customer managed keys support automatic annual rotation and CloudTrail auditing.
- B
Use customer-provided encryption keys (SSE-C) and rotate keys manually.
Why wrong: SSE-C requires customer to manage and rotate keys; no automatic rotation.
- C
Use S3 managed keys (SSE-S3) and enable S3 server access logs.
Why wrong: SSE-S3 does not provide key usage audit trail.
- D
Configure a bucket policy to enforce encryption using the 'aws:SecureTransport' condition.
Why wrong: Bucket policy enforces encryption in transit, not at rest.
Question 964 of 1,786
S3 Encryption at Rest — KMS Automatic Rotation and Audit Trail
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 stores sensitive data in an Amazon S3 bucket. A compliance requirement mandates that all data must be encrypted at rest with a key that is automatically rotated every year. The company also needs to maintain an audit trail of who used the key. Which solution meets these requirements?
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
✓
Use AWS KMS customer managed keys (SSE-KMS) with automatic key rotation enabled.
AWS KMS customer managed keys (SSE-KMS) with automatic key rotation enabled satisfies both requirements: it encrypts data at rest in S3 and automatically rotates the KMS key every year. Additionally, KMS integrates with AWS CloudTrail to log every API call (e.g., Decrypt, GenerateDataKey) that uses the key, providing an audit trail of who used the key and when.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
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 AWS KMS customer managed keys (SSE-KMS) with automatic key rotation enabled.
Why this is correct
KMS customer managed keys support automatic annual rotation and CloudTrail auditing.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use customer-provided encryption keys (SSE-C) and rotate keys manually.
Why it's wrong here
SSE-C requires customer to manage and rotate keys; no automatic rotation.
- ✗
Use S3 managed keys (SSE-S3) and enable S3 server access logs.
Why it's wrong here
SSE-S3 does not provide key usage audit trail.
- ✗
Configure a bucket policy to enforce encryption using the 'aws:SecureTransport' condition.
Why it's wrong here
Bucket policy enforces encryption in transit, not at rest.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse SSE-S3's automatic rotation (which is invisible and lacks audit trails) with SSE-KMS's automatic rotation (which provides both rotation and CloudTrail logging), or they mistakenly think SSE-C or bucket policies can satisfy the audit trail requirement.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
When you enable automatic key rotation for a customer managed KMS key, AWS KMS rotates the key material annually by creating a new backing key while retaining the old one for decryption of existing data. CloudTrail records every KMS API call with the caller identity (IAM user/role), source IP, and time, enabling a complete audit trail. A common subtlety is that automatic rotation does not re-encrypt existing objects; it only affects new encryption operations, but the compliance requirement for 'encrypted at rest with a key that is automatically rotated' is still met because the key itself is rotated.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
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.
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 |
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this DEA-C01 question test?
Data Store Management — This question tests Data Store Management — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use AWS KMS customer managed keys (SSE-KMS) with automatic key rotation enabled. — AWS KMS customer managed keys (SSE-KMS) with automatic key rotation enabled satisfies both requirements: it encrypts data at rest in S3 and automatically rotates the KMS key every year. Additionally, KMS integrates with AWS CloudTrail to log every API call (e.g., Decrypt, GenerateDataKey) that uses the key, providing an audit trail of who used the key and when.
What should I do if I get this DEA-C01 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Same concept, more angles
1 more ways this is tested on DEA-C01
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. A company stores sensitive customer data in an Amazon S3 bucket. The security team requires that all data be encrypted at rest using a key that is automatically rotated every year. Which encryption solution should the data engineer use?
medium- A.SSE-S3
- ✓ B.SSE-KMS with a customer managed key
- C.SSE-C
- D.Client-side encryption
Why B: SSE-KMS with a customer managed key is correct because it allows you to use an AWS KMS key that you control, enabling automatic annual key rotation via the KMS key rotation feature. This satisfies the security team's requirement for encryption at rest with a key that is automatically rotated every year, while maintaining control over the key lifecycle.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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