- A
Use Amazon GuardDuty to automatically modify the security group membership of the instance.
Why wrong: GuardDuty detects threats but does not perform remediation; it can trigger EventBridge to invoke a Lambda, but the option does not mention that.
- B
Use AWS Shield Advanced to automatically apply the quarantine security group to the instance.
Why wrong: Shield Advanced provides DDoS protection, not instance isolation.
- C
Use AWS Lambda functions triggered by Amazon EventBridge to remove the instance from the security group and attach the quarantine group.
Why wrong: Lambda can modify security groups, but the question asks for a combination; this option omits the triggering mechanism beyond EventBridge, which is not specific to compliance.
- D
Use AWS Config rules with AWS Systems Manager Automation documents to automatically remove the instance from the security group and attach the quarantine group when non-compliant.
AWS Config can detect non-compliant instances (e.g., missing required tags) and trigger SSM Automation to perform remediation actions.
Quick Answer
The answer is to use AWS Config rules with Systems Manager Automation documents. This combination is correct because AWS Config continuously evaluates EC2 instance security group configurations against your compliance rules, and when a non-compliant instance is detected, it can trigger a Systems Manager Automation document as a remediation action. That automation document then executes the steps to automatically isolate the compromised EC2 instance by removing it from its current security group and attaching a quarantine security group that only allows traffic to a forensic instance. On the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional DOP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of event-driven, serverless incident response workflows without custom code—a common trap is choosing Lambda functions for orchestration, but Systems Manager Automation is the native, fully managed service for this purpose. Memory tip: think "Config catches, Automation patches" to remember the detection-to-remediation pipeline.
DOP-C02 Incident and Event Response Practice Question
This DOP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of incident and event response. 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 uses AWS Organizations with multiple accounts. The security team needs to automatically isolate a compromised EC2 instance by removing it from its security group and attaching a quarantine security group that only allows traffic to a forensic instance. Which combination of actions should be implemented?
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 Config rules with AWS Systems Manager Automation documents to automatically remove the instance from the security group and attach the quarantine group when non-compliant.
Option D is correct because AWS Config rules can evaluate security group membership compliance, and when a non-compliant EC2 instance is detected, an AWS Systems Manager Automation document can be triggered via a remediation action. This automation document can execute the steps to remove the instance from its current security group and attach a quarantine security group, providing a fully automated, event-driven isolation workflow without requiring custom code for orchestration.
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 Amazon GuardDuty to automatically modify the security group membership of the instance.
Why it's wrong here
GuardDuty detects threats but does not perform remediation; it can trigger EventBridge to invoke a Lambda, but the option does not mention that.
- ✗
Use AWS Shield Advanced to automatically apply the quarantine security group to the instance.
Why it's wrong here
Shield Advanced provides DDoS protection, not instance isolation.
- ✗
Use AWS Lambda functions triggered by Amazon EventBridge to remove the instance from the security group and attach the quarantine group.
Why it's wrong here
Lambda can modify security groups, but the question asks for a combination; this option omits the triggering mechanism beyond EventBridge, which is not specific to compliance.
- ✓
Use AWS Config rules with AWS Systems Manager Automation documents to automatically remove the instance from the security group and attach the quarantine group when non-compliant.
Why this is correct
AWS Config can detect non-compliant instances (e.g., missing required tags) and trigger SSM Automation to perform remediation actions.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume any event-driven automation (like Lambda + EventBridge) is always the best answer, but AWS Config with Systems Manager Automation is the native, fully managed, and auditable solution for compliance-driven remediation without custom code.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
AWS Config rules can be configured with an automatic remediation action that invokes an SSM Automation document (e.g., AWS-DetachSecurityGroupFromInstance and AWS-AttachSecurityGroupToInstance). The Automation document runs as a series of steps using the AWS API, and the remediation can be rate-limited and retried. In a real-world scenario, this approach ensures that the isolation action is logged in AWS CloudTrail and can be reviewed for compliance, whereas a Lambda-based solution would require additional custom logging and error handling.
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 healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this DOP-C02 question test?
Incident and Event Response — This question tests Incident and Event Response — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use AWS Config rules with AWS Systems Manager Automation documents to automatically remove the instance from the security group and attach the quarantine group when non-compliant. — Option D is correct because AWS Config rules can evaluate security group membership compliance, and when a non-compliant EC2 instance is detected, an AWS Systems Manager Automation document can be triggered via a remediation action. This automation document can execute the steps to remove the instance from its current security group and attach a quarantine security group, providing a fully automated, event-driven isolation workflow without requiring custom code for orchestration.
What should I do if I get this DOP-C02 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.
About these practice questions
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Same concept, more angles
2 more ways this is tested on DOP-C02
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 uses AWS Organizations with multiple accounts. The security team notices that an IAM user in the production account has been making changes to security group rules that are not compliant with the company's policy. The team wants to automatically revoke any non-compliant security group rules and notify the security team. What is the MOST efficient way to achieve this?
hard- A.Create a CloudWatch alarm on the SecurityGroupEvent metric to notify the security team.
- B.Apply a Service Control Policy (SCP) that denies changes to security groups in the production account.
- C.Set up a CloudTrail trail that logs security group modifications and use Amazon Detective to analyze the changes.
- ✓ D.Use an AWS Config managed rule to detect non-compliant security group rules, and configure an automatic remediation action with AWS Systems Manager Automation.
Why D: Option D is correct because AWS Config managed rules can continuously evaluate security group rules against a desired policy (e.g., disallowing SSH from 0.0.0.0/0). When a non-compliant change is detected, AWS Config can trigger an automatic remediation action using an AWS Systems Manager Automation document that revokes the offending rule. This provides both detection and automated correction without manual intervention, making it the most efficient solution.
Variation 2. A company uses AWS Organizations with multiple accounts. The security team needs a centralized solution to detect and respond to EC2 instances that are publicly accessible with SSH open to 0.0.0.0/0. Which combination of services provides the most automated detection and remediation?
hard- A.AWS CloudTrail and Amazon EventBridge
- B.Amazon GuardDuty and AWS Lambda
- C.AWS Config and Amazon Simple Notification Service (SNS)
- ✓ D.AWS Config and AWS Systems Manager Automation
Why D: The correct answer is D. AWS Config rules can detect non-compliant security groups, and Systems Manager Automation can remediate by modifying the security group rules. GuardDuty detects threats but not config compliance. EventBridge alone doesn't remediate. CloudTrail is for auditing API calls.
Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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