DBS-C01 Database Security Practice Question
A security engineer is designing a solution to encrypt data at rest for an Amazon Redshift cluster. The company requires that the encryption key be rotated automatically every year. 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
✓
Enable encryption for the Redshift cluster using an AWS KMS key with automatic rotation.
Amazon Redshift supports encryption at rest using AWS KMS with automatic key rotation. When you enable encryption for a Redshift cluster, you can choose a KMS key with automatic rotation enabled, which meets the requirement of rotating the encryption key automatically every year. Option A is incorrect because manual rotation using a Lambda function is not the recommended approach when automatic rotation is available. Redshift does not support custom manual rotation; it relies on KMS for key management. Option C is incorrect because Redshift does not support CloudHSM for encryption at rest; it uses AWS KMS. CloudHSM does not provide automatic rotation as a built-in feature in the same way KMS does. Option D is incorrect because Redshift does not store cluster data in an S3 bucket; S3 server-side encryption is not applicable to the Redshift cluster itself. Redshift uses its own encryption mechanism integrated with 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.
- ✗
Use a Lambda function to rotate the encryption key manually every year.
Why it's wrong here
Manual rotation using a Lambda function is not recommended because automatic rotation is available via KMS. Redshift does not support custom key rotation without KMS.
- ✓
Enable encryption for the Redshift cluster using an AWS KMS key with automatic rotation.
Why this is correct
Enabling encryption for the Redshift cluster with an AWS KMS key that has automatic rotation meets the requirement for yearly key rotation.
- ✗
Use a CloudHSM key to encrypt the Redshift cluster and configure automatic rotation in CloudHSM.
Why it's wrong here
CloudHSM is not supported for Redshift encryption at rest; Redshift uses AWS KMS. CloudHSM also does not provide automatic rotation as a built-in feature.
- ✗
Store the Redshift cluster data in an S3 bucket with server-side encryption enabled.
Why it's wrong here
Storing Redshift data in an S3 bucket with server-side encryption does not encrypt the Redshift cluster itself; it is not a valid solution for the requirement.
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.