The correct configuration is to run the SageMaker training job in a private subnet with no internet access and use a KMS key for encryption. This meets the security requirements because a private subnet lacks a route to an internet gateway, ensuring the training job has no internet access while still allowing secure communication through VPC endpoints for S3 and the SageMaker API. For encryption, KMS keys encrypt data at rest on EBS volumes and S3 buckets, while HTTPS/TLS handles encryption in transit. On the AWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer Associate MLA-C01 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of network isolation and data protection in SageMaker—a common trap is assuming a public subnet with a NAT gateway satisfies the no-internet requirement, but that still allows outbound traffic. Remember the memory tip: “Private subnet, KMS key, no NAT—secure training, that’s a fact.”
MLA-C01 Practice Question: ML Solution Monitoring, Maintenance and Security
This MLA-C01 practice question tests your understanding of ml solution monitoring, maintenance and security. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 is using Amazon SageMaker to train a model on sensitive customer data. The security team requires that all data be encrypted in transit and at rest, and that the training job does not have internet access. Which configuration should the team use to meet these requirements?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Configure the training job to run in a private subnet with no internet access, and use a KMS key for encryption
Option C is correct because running the SageMaker training job in a private subnet with no internet access ensures the job cannot reach the public internet, satisfying the no-internet-access requirement. Using an AWS KMS key for encryption at rest (for the S3 bucket and EBS volumes) and enforcing encryption in transit (via HTTPS/TLS for SageMaker and S3 endpoints) meets the encryption requirements. SageMaker training jobs in a private subnet use VPC endpoints (e.g., S3 and SageMaker API endpoints) to communicate securely without internet access.
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.
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Configure the training job to run in a public subnet with a security group that blocks outbound traffic
Why it's wrong here
Public subnets have implicit internet access via IGW.
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Configure the training job to run in a private subnet, but disable encryption to reduce latency
Why it's wrong here
Disabling encryption violates the encryption requirement.
✓
Configure the training job to run in a private subnet with no internet access, and use a KMS key for encryption
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Configure the training job to run in a VPC with a NAT gateway, and use default SageMaker encryption
Why it's wrong here
NATgateway provides internet access, violating the requirement.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse a private subnet with a NATgateway as providing no internet access, but a NAT gateway actually enables outbound internet connectivity, which violates the requirement.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, SageMaker training jobs in a private subnet rely on VPC endpoints (interface endpoints for SageMaker API and gateway endpoints for S3) to communicate with AWS services without traversing the internet. The KMS key encrypts the EBS volumes attached to the training instances and the S3 buckets used for input/output data, while encryption in transit is enforced by SageMaker's use of TLS 1.2 for all API calls and data transfers. A common real-world scenario is a financial services company that must comply with PCI DSS, requiring both encryption and network isolation for model training on sensitive transaction data.
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.
ML Solution Monitoring, Maintenance and Security — This question tests ML Solution Monitoring, Maintenance and Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Configure the training job to run in a private subnet with no internet access, and use a KMS key for encryption — Option C is correct because running the SageMaker training job in a private subnet with no internet access ensures the job cannot reach the public internet, satisfying the no-internet-access requirement. Using an AWS KMS key for encryption at rest (for the S3 bucket and EBS volumes) and enforcing encryption in transit (via HTTPS/TLS for SageMaker and S3 endpoints) meets the encryption requirements. SageMaker training jobs in a private subnet use VPC endpoints (e.g., S3 and SageMaker API endpoints) to communicate securely without internet access.
What should I do if I get this MLA-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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Question Discussion
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