This ANS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of network security, compliance and governance. 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 has a VPC with public and private subnets. The security team wants to allow instances in a private subnet to download software updates from the internet but prevent inbound internet traffic. Which AWS service should be used?
Internet gateway
Why wrong: Internet gateway allows inbound and outbound traffic, not outbound-only.
AWS Site-to-Site VPN
Why wrong: VPN provides secure connection to on-premises, not internet access.
VPC peering connection
Why wrong: VPC peering does not provide internet access.
NAT gateway
NAT gateway enables outbound internet traffic from private subnets.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
NAT gateway
A NAT gateway allows outbound internet traffic from private subnets while blocking unsolicited inbound traffic. Option C is correct. Option A is wrong because internet gateway allows bidirectional traffic. Option B is wrong because VPC peering is for VPC-to-VPC. Option D is wrong because VPN is for hybrid connectivity.
Key principle: Count usable hosts — not total addresses — and remember that the network and broadcast addresses are not available to hosts in standard IPv4 subnets.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Internet gateway
Why it's wrong here
Internet gateway allows inbound and outbound traffic, not outbound-only.
AWS Site-to-Site VPN
Why it's wrong here
VPN provides secure connection to on-premises, not internet access.
VPC peering connection
Why it's wrong here
VPC peering does not provide internet access.
NAT gateway
Common exam traps
Subnetting questions often tempt you into counting all addresses. In normal IPv4 subnets, the network and broadcast addresses are not usable host addresses.
Detailed technical explanation
Subnetting questions test whether you can identify the network, broadcast address, usable range, mask and correct subnet. Slow down enough to calculate the block size correctly.
Key takeaway
Count usable hosts — not total addresses — and remember that the network and broadcast addresses are not available to hosts in standard IPv4 subnets.
Real-world example
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
Review block sizes, usable host formulas (2^n − 2), and how to find network and broadcast addresses for /24 through /30. Then practise related ANS-C01 subnetting questions on CIDR, address ranges, and subnet selection.
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FAQ
Network Security, Compliance and Governance — This question tests Network Security, Compliance and Governance — CIDR notation defines the prefix length..
The correct answer is: NAT gateway — A NAT gateway allows outbound internet traffic from private subnets while blocking unsolicited inbound traffic. Option C is correct. Option A is wrong because internet gateway allows bidirectional traffic. Option B is wrong because VPC peering is for VPC-to-VPC. Option D is wrong because VPN is for hybrid connectivity.
Review block sizes, usable host formulas (2^n − 2), and how to find network and broadcast addresses for /24 through /30. Then practise related ANS-C01 subnetting questions on CIDR, address ranges, and subnet selection.
CIDR notation defines the prefix length.
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 2026
This ANS-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 ANS-C01 exam.
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