ANS-C01 Network Security, Compliance and Governance Practice Question
A company uses AWS Organizations with SCPs to restrict access. The security team notices that users in the 'Developers' account can launch EC2 instances with public IP addresses, even though the SCP denies ec2:AssociateAddress. What is the most likely reason?
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
✓
The users logged in as the root user of the account.
SCPs do not apply to the root user of a member account. The root user can perform any action, including launching EC2 instances with public IP addresses, regardless of SCP restrictions. Option A is incorrect because SCPs apply to all IAM users and roles in the target OU, not just specific OUs; the issue here is the use of root user. Option C is incorrect because SCPs apply to IAM users and roles, not just the root user; the root user is explicitly exempt. Option D is incorrect because IAM roles are subject to SCPs; they cannot bypass SCPs. The correct reason is that the users logged in as the root user, which is not bound by SCPs.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The SCP was applied to the wrong organizational unit.
Why it's wrong here
Even if applied to wrong OU, root user would still not be affected by SCP.
- ✓
The users logged in as the root user of the account.
Why this is correct
Root user actions are not restricted by SCPs.
- ✗
The SCP only applies to the root user, not IAM users.
Why it's wrong here
SCPs apply to all IAM users and roles in the account, not just root.
- ✗
The users assumed an IAM role that bypasses the SCP.
Why it's wrong here
SCPs apply to all principals including roles; cannot be bypassed by assuming a role.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.