- A
Use SSE-S3 (Amazon S3 managed keys) and configure a lifecycle policy to re-encrypt objects every 90 days
Why wrong: SSE-S3 uses S3-managed keys; you cannot manage or rotate the keys yourself.
- B
Use SSE-KMS with a customer managed key and configure automatic key rotation every 90 days
Why wrong: KMS customer managed keys can be rotated, but the keys are managed by AWS, not your own HSM.
- C
Use client-side encryption with keys stored in AWS CloudHSM and rotate the keys using CloudHSM key rotation
CloudHSM provides dedicated HSMs under your control. You can store keys in CloudHSM and rotate them as needed.
- D
Use SSE-C (customer-provided keys) and provide the key with each PUT request, rotating the key every 90 days
Why wrong: SSE-C requires you to provide the encryption key with each request, which is not practical for automatic rotation and requires significant application changes.
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 designing a data lake on AWS using Amazon S3. The data lake will store sensitive customer data that must be encrypted at rest. The company requires that the encryption keys be managed by the company's own hardware security module (HSM) and rotated every 90 days. Which solution meets these requirements?
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 client-side encryption with keys stored in AWS CloudHSM and rotate the keys using CloudHSM key rotation
Option C is correct because the company requires encryption keys to be managed by its own HSM and rotated every 90 days. AWS CloudHSM provides a dedicated HSM appliance that the customer fully controls, and client-side encryption ensures that the encryption keys never leave the customer's HSM environment. The customer can implement key rotation within CloudHSM using its native key management capabilities, meeting both the HSM control and 90-day rotation requirements.
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 SSE-S3 (Amazon S3 managed keys) and configure a lifecycle policy to re-encrypt objects every 90 days
Why it's wrong here
SSE-S3 uses S3-managed keys; you cannot manage or rotate the keys yourself.
- ✗
Use SSE-KMS with a customer managed key and configure automatic key rotation every 90 days
Why it's wrong here
KMS customer managed keys can be rotated, but the keys are managed by AWS, not your own HSM.
- ✓
Use client-side encryption with keys stored in AWS CloudHSM and rotate the keys using CloudHSM key rotation
Why this is correct
CloudHSM provides dedicated HSMs under your control. You can store keys in CloudHSM and rotate them as needed.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use SSE-C (customer-provided keys) and provide the key with each PUT request, rotating the key every 90 days
Why it's wrong here
SSE-C requires you to provide the encryption key with each request, which is not practical for automatic rotation and requires significant application changes.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse SSE-KMS with customer managed keys as meeting the 'own HSM' requirement, but KMS is a shared service and does not provide a dedicated HSM under the customer's exclusive control, unlike CloudHSM.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Client-side encryption with CloudHSM means the encryption/decryption occurs on the client side using keys generated and stored in the HSM, so the plaintext data never reaches AWS in unencrypted form. CloudHSM supports PKCS#11, Java JCE, and Microsoft CNG interfaces, allowing custom key rotation scripts that can generate new keys and re-encrypt data without exposing keys to AWS. In contrast, SSE-KMS with customer managed keys uses FIPS 140-2 Level 2 (or Level 3 with CloudHSM integration) but the key material is stored in KMS, not the customer's dedicated HSM.
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.
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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 client-side encryption with keys stored in AWS CloudHSM and rotate the keys using CloudHSM key rotation — Option C is correct because the company requires encryption keys to be managed by its own HSM and rotated every 90 days. AWS CloudHSM provides a dedicated HSM appliance that the customer fully controls, and client-side encryption ensures that the encryption keys never leave the customer's HSM environment. The customer can implement key rotation within CloudHSM using its native key management capabilities, meeting both the HSM control and 90-day rotation requirements.
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.
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
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