Quick Answer
The answer is AWS CloudTrail. This is the correct choice because CloudTrail records all API calls made within your AWS environment, including the AuthorizeSecurityGroupIngress call that created the overly permissive security group rule. By searching CloudTrail event history for this specific API event, you can directly identify the IAM user, source IP address, and timestamp of the rule creation, which is exactly what the security engineer needs to pinpoint who introduced the vulnerability. On the AWS Certified Advanced Networking Specialty ANS-C01 exam, this question tests your understanding of which service captures identity-driven API activity versus network-level or configuration-level data—a common trap is confusing VPC Flow Logs (which show traffic, not who made changes) or AWS Config (which shows resource state, not who changed it). Remember the memory tip: CloudTrail trails the user, not the traffic.
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 security group that allows inbound SSH (port 22) from 0.0.0.0/0. A security engineer discovers that an EC2 instance was compromised via SSH. The engineer needs to identify which IAM user created the overly permissive security group rule. Which AWS service or feature should the engineer use?
VPC Flow Logs
Why wrong: VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic, not API calls.
AWS Config
Why wrong: AWS Config shows configuration changes but not the identity of the user making the change.
Amazon GuardDuty
Why wrong: GuardDuty detects malicious activity but does not log API caller identity.
AWS CloudTrail
CloudTrail records API calls and the IAM user who made them.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
AWS CloudTrail
AWS CloudTrail is the correct service because it records API calls made within the AWS environment, including the AuthorizeSecurityGroupIngress API call that created the overly permissive security group rule. By searching CloudTrail logs for this specific API event, the engineer can identify the IAM user, source IP, and timestamp of the rule creation. VPC Flow Logs, AWS Config, and GuardDuty do not capture IAM user identity for API-level changes.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
VPC Flow Logs
Why it's wrong here
VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic, not API calls.
AWS Config
Why it's wrong here
AWS Config shows configuration changes but not the identity of the user making the change.
Amazon GuardDuty
Why it's wrong here
GuardDuty detects malicious activity but does not log API caller identity.
AWS CloudTrail
Why this is correct
CloudTrail records API calls and the IAM user who made them.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
AWS often tests the distinction between services that log API calls (CloudTrail) versus those that monitor network traffic (VPC Flow Logs) or detect threats (GuardDuty), and the trap here is assuming that VPC Flow Logs or AWS Config can identify the IAM user responsible for a security group rule change.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
AWS Config shows configuration changes but not the identity of the user making the change.
Detailed technical explanation
CloudTrail logs every AWS API call as an event in JSON format, including the userIdentity field (e.g., IAM user ARN, role, or federated user), sourceIPAddress, and requestParameters such as the IpPermissions for AuthorizeSecurityGroupIngress. The engineer can use CloudTrail Event History or Athena queries on CloudTrail logs to filter by eventName = 'AuthorizeSecurityGroupIngress' and resource ARN containing the compromised security group ID. In a real-world scenario, if the rule was created via the AWS Management Console, the userIdentity will show the IAM user; if via CLI or SDK, it will show the access key's associated IAM user or role.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
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FAQ
Network Security, Compliance and Governance — This question tests Network Security, Compliance and Governance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: AWS CloudTrail — AWS CloudTrail is the correct service because it records API calls made within the AWS environment, including the AuthorizeSecurityGroupIngress API call that created the overly permissive security group rule. By searching CloudTrail logs for this specific API event, the engineer can identify the IAM user, source IP, and timestamp of the rule creation. VPC Flow Logs, AWS Config, and GuardDuty do not capture IAM user identity for API-level changes.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 30, 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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