- A
Use AWS Lake Formation to define column-level permissions in the Data Catalog.
Lake Formation integrates with Athena and allows fine-grained column-level access control with minimal effort.
- B
Create separate S3 buckets for sensitive and non-sensitive data and apply bucket policies to restrict access.
Why wrong: Bucket policies control access to objects, not columns within a file.
- C
Load the data into Amazon Redshift and use Redshift Spectrum to query S3, then apply column-level security through Redshift.
Why wrong: Redshift adds operational overhead and cost; Lake Formation is simpler for Athena-only queries.
- D
Use IAM policies with condition keys to restrict access based on the Athena workgroup.
Why wrong: IAM policies cannot restrict access to specific columns; they operate at the API level.
SAP-C02 Design for New Solutions Practice Question
This SAP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of design for new solutions. 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 is building a data lake on Amazon S3 using Parquet files. The data will be queried by multiple teams using Amazon Athena. The security team requires that access to sensitive columns (e.g., PII) be restricted based on the user's role. Which solution provides column-level access control with the LEAST administrative overhead?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue:
"least"Why it matters: You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
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
Use AWS Lake Formation to define column-level permissions in the Data Catalog.
AWS Lake Formation provides native column-level filtering in the Data Catalog, allowing you to define granular permissions on specific columns of a table without moving or duplicating data. When Athena queries a table registered with Lake Formation, the service automatically applies column-level access controls based on the IAM role or user, enforcing the restriction at query runtime with minimal administrative overhead.
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.
- ✓
Use AWS Lake Formation to define column-level permissions in the Data Catalog.
Why this is correct
Lake Formation integrates with Athena and allows fine-grained column-level access control with minimal effort.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "least" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Create separate S3 buckets for sensitive and non-sensitive data and apply bucket policies to restrict access.
Why it's wrong here
Bucket policies control access to objects, not columns within a file.
- ✗
Load the data into Amazon Redshift and use Redshift Spectrum to query S3, then apply column-level security through Redshift.
Why it's wrong here
Redshift adds operational overhead and cost; Lake Formation is simpler for Athena-only queries.
- ✗
Use IAM policies with condition keys to restrict access based on the Athena workgroup.
Why it's wrong here
IAM policies cannot restrict access to specific columns; they operate at the API level.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume S3 bucket policies or IAM conditions can achieve column-level access, but these operate at the object or API level and cannot filter columns within a single file, which is a key distinction tested in the SAP-C02 exam.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Lake Formation implements column-level security by storing metadata about permitted columns in the Data Catalog and injecting a filter predicate into the query engine (e.g., Athena or Redshift Spectrum) at query planning time. Under the hood, this uses the IAM credential vending system to generate temporary credentials scoped to the allowed columns, ensuring that the query engine never reads the restricted columns from S3. In a real-world scenario, a data lake with thousands of tables can have column permissions managed centrally via Lake Formation, avoiding the need to maintain separate views or materialized copies for each role.
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.
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 |
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.
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Design for New Solutions — study guide chapter
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SAP-C02 question test?
Design for New Solutions — This question tests Design for New Solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use AWS Lake Formation to define column-level permissions in the Data Catalog. — AWS Lake Formation provides native column-level filtering in the Data Catalog, allowing you to define granular permissions on specific columns of a table without moving or duplicating data. When Athena queries a table registered with Lake Formation, the service automatically applies column-level access controls based on the IAM role or user, enforcing the restriction at query runtime with minimal administrative overhead.
What should I do if I get this SAP-C02 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "least". You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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.
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