Automatically Enforce AWS Config Rules in New Member Accounts Using SCP and Conformance Packs
A company has multiple AWS accounts managed through AWS Organizations. The security team wants to enforce that all new member accounts automatically have AWS Config enabled with a specific set of rules. Which solution is the MOST efficient?
Quick Answer
The answer is to create an SCP that denies disabling AWS Config and deploy an AWS Config conformance pack from a delegated admin account. This solution is the most efficient because the SCP acts as a preventive guardrail at the root organizational unit, ensuring Config cannot be turned off in any new member account, while the conformance pack automatically enforces the required set of rules across the entire organization without per-account manual setup. On the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Professional SAP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of combining service control policies for mandatory security baselines with delegated administration for scalable governance—a common trap is choosing CloudFormation StackSets, which require manual stack instance updates for new accounts, or relying on event-driven Lambda functions that introduce latency and gaps. Remember the memory tip: “SCP to lock, conformance pack to stock”—the SCP locks Config on, and the conformance pack stocks the rules automatically.
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is that candidates often overcomplicate the solution by choosing event-driven or manual approaches (like Lambda or StackSets) instead of recognizing that native AWS Organizations and Config conformance packs provide a fully automated, policy-based enforcement mechanism that requires no per-account management.
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
✓
Create an SCP to deny disabling AWS Config, and use an AWS Config conformance pack in a delegated admin account to enforce rules across the organization.
It combines an SCP to prevent disabling AWS Config with an AWS Config conformance pack deployed from a delegated admin account, which automatically applies to all existing and new member accounts in the organization. This approach is fully automated, requires no manual intervention for new accounts, and enforces both the enablement of Config and the required rules across the entire organization.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Create an AWS Config aggregator in the management account and enable Config for each account manually.
Why it's wrong here
Manual configuration is inefficient and error-prone.
- ✗
Use AWS CloudFormation StackSets to deploy a Config template to each account, and manually add new accounts to the StackSet.
Why it's wrong here
Manual addition of accounts is required.
- ✗
Use AWS Lambda functions triggered by AWS CloudTrail to enable Config and deploy rules whenever a new account is created.
Why it's wrong here
Lambda approach can be complex and may not cover all scenarios.
- ✓
Create an SCP to deny disabling AWS Config, and use an AWS Config conformance pack in a delegated admin account to enforce rules across the organization.
Why this is correct
SCP enforces Config enablement; conformance pack enforces rules automatically on new accounts.
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Same concept, more angles
1 more way this is tested on SAP-C02
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. A company has multiple AWS accounts managed using AWS Organizations. The security team wants to enforce that all new accounts automatically have a specific AWS Config rule enabled to prohibit public S3 bucket access. Which solution requires the least operational overhead?
medium- ✓ A.Use AWS CloudFormation StackSets to deploy the AWS Config rule to all accounts.
- B.Enable AWS Config in the management account and use an aggregator for all accounts.
- C.Use an SCP to automatically enable the AWS Config rule in all accounts.
- D.Use an SCP to deny the s3:PutBucketPublicAccessBlock action if a specific tag is not present.
Why A: AWS CloudFormation StackSets can deploy the AWS Config rule to all accounts in the organization. With automatic deployment enabled, new accounts will automatically receive the rule, requiring minimal operational overhead after initial setup. Option B is incorrect because it only sets up an aggregator and does not enable any rule. Option C is incorrect because SCPs cannot automatically enable Config rules; they only control API actions. Option D is incorrect because it denies the s3:PutBucketPublicAccessBlock action but does not enable the required Config rule, failing to meet the explicit requirement.
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.