DBS-C01 Database Security Practice Question
A company is using Amazon RDS for MySQL with encryption at rest enabled. The security team wants to ensure that the database backups stored in Amazon S3 are also encrypted using a customer-managed KMS key. What should be done to meet this requirement?
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
✓
No additional action is required; RDS automatically uses the same KMS key for backups.
When encryption at rest is enabled for an RDS DB instance, RDS automatically encrypts automated backups, snapshots, and read replicas with the same KMS key used for the DB instance. No additional action is required. Option A is incorrect because you cannot specify a separate KMS key for backups; the key is inherited. Option C is incorrect because you cannot modify the DB instance to enable backup encryption with a different key; it is automatically encrypted with the same key. Option D is incorrect because enabling S3 default encryption does not affect RDS backups, as RDS manages the backup storage and encryption directly.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Create a new KMS key and specify it when creating the DB instance to encrypt backups differently.
Why it's wrong here
A different key cannot be specified for backups; the instance key is used.
- ✓
No additional action is required; RDS automatically uses the same KMS key for backups.
Why this is correct
RDS automatically encrypts backups with the same key.
- ✗
Modify the DB instance to enable backup encryption using a new KMS key.
Why it's wrong here
Modifying does not allow separate backup encryption.
- ✗
Enable default encryption on the S3 bucket where backups are stored.
Why it's wrong here
RDS backup storage is managed by RDS, not directly on S3 by the user.
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 DBS-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 DBS-C01 exam.