This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security. 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 wants to allow cross-account access to an S3 bucket in Account A from a role in Account B. The S3 bucket policy in Account A allows the role's ARN. However, access is denied. What is the most likely missing step?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The role in Account B must have an IAM policy that allows the S3 actions.
Option B is correct because cross-account S3 access requires both a resource-based policy (the bucket policy in Account A) that grants access to the role ARN, and an identity-based policy (an IAM policy attached to the role in Account B) that explicitly allows the S3 actions. Without the IAM policy in Account B, the role lacks permission to perform the S3 operations, even though the bucket policy permits the access. This is a fundamental principle of AWS cross-account authorization: both the resource side and the principal side must grant the necessary permissions.
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.
✗
Add a bucket policy that denies access to all principals.
Why it's wrong here
This would block access, not fix it.
✓
The role in Account B must have an IAM policy that allows the S3 actions.
Why this is correct
Cross-account access requires both the resource-based policy (bucket policy) and the identity-based policy (IAM role) to grant permissions.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Disable block public access settings on the bucket.
Why it's wrong here
The access is not public; it's cross-account via a role, so block public access is irrelevant.
✗
Enable ACLs on the S3 bucket.
Why it's wrong here
ACLs are legacy and not required for cross-account access with bucket policies.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume a bucket policy alone is sufficient for cross-account access, overlooking the requirement for an IAM policy on the requesting role to explicitly allow the S3 actions.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, AWS evaluates both the bucket policy (resource-based) and the IAM policy (identity-based) when authorizing a cross-account request. The bucket policy must grant access to the role ARN, but the role itself must have an IAM policy that allows the S3 actions (e.g., s3:GetObject) on the bucket. This is because the role in Account B is the principal making the request, and AWS requires that the principal have explicit permission to perform the action. A common real-world scenario is when a developer attaches only a bucket policy and forgets to attach the required IAM policy to the role, leading to 'Access Denied' errors despite the bucket policy appearing correct.
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.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Security — This question tests Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The role in Account B must have an IAM policy that allows the S3 actions. — Option B is correct because cross-account S3 access requires both a resource-based policy (the bucket policy in Account A) that grants access to the role ARN, and an identity-based policy (an IAM policy attached to the role in Account B) that explicitly allows the S3 actions. Without the IAM policy in Account B, the role lacks permission to perform the S3 operations, even though the bucket policy permits the access. This is a fundamental principle of AWS cross-account authorization: both the resource side and the principal side must grant the necessary permissions.
What should I do if I get this DVA-C02 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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