SAP-C02 Design for New Solutions Practice Question
A company is designing a new application that will store sensitive user data in Amazon S3. The data must be encrypted at rest and in transit. The solution must use AWS managed keys and must be compliant with PCI DSS. Which combination of encryption options should be used?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse SSE-KMS (which also uses AWS managed keys but adds additional control and cost) with SSE-S3, but SSE-S3 is simpler and fully compliant; the key requirement is 'AWS managed keys,' not necessarily KMS, and SSE-S3 meets that without extra overhead.
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
✓
SSE-S3 for at-rest encryption and HTTPS for in-transit encryption
SSE-S3 provides server-side encryption at rest using AWS-managed keys (S3-managed keys), which satisfies the requirement for AWS managed keys. HTTPS ensures encryption in transit, and both are compliant with PCI DSS standards for protecting sensitive data.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
SSE-S3 for at-rest encryption and HTTPS for in-transit encryption
Why this is correct
SSE-S3 uses AWS managed keys and HTTPS is standard for in-transit.
- ✗
Client-side encryption for at-rest and HTTPS for in-transit
Why it's wrong here
Client-side encryption does not use AWS managed keys.
- ✗
SSE-KMS for at-rest encryption and HTTP for in-transit encryption
Why it's wrong here
HTTP is not encrypted.
- ✗
SSE-C for at-rest encryption and HTTPS for in-transit
Why it's wrong here
SSE-C uses customer-provided keys, not AWS managed.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
One of 1,660 original SAP-C02 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This SAP-C02 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 SAP-C02 exam.