Monitoring Root User Activity Across AWS Organizations Accounts
A company uses AWS Organizations and has a requirement that all root user activities in member accounts must be immediately reported to the security team. Which combination of actions should be taken to meet this requirement? (Choose the best answer.)
Quick Answer
The answer is to enable AWS CloudTrail in all accounts with a trail logging management events to a centralized S3 bucket, then use Amazon CloudWatch Events (now EventBridge) to create a rule matching root user API calls and send notifications via Amazon SNS. This combination works because CloudTrail captures every root user action as a management event, and EventBridge provides real-time event filtering and routing, enabling immediate notification without polling. On the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Professional SAP-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of centralized logging and event-driven monitoring across AWS Organizations, often appearing as a multi-account security requirement. A common trap is choosing a solution that relies on periodic checks, such as AWS Config rules or batch S3 event notifications, which fail the “immediately reported” condition. Remember the memory tip: “Trail for the log, EventBridge for the alert” — CloudTrail records the root user’s every move, and EventBridge sounds the alarm in real time.
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse AWS Config rules (which monitor resource configurations) with CloudTrail event monitoring, or assume periodic tools like Athena or Trusted Advisor can satisfy an immediate reporting requirement.
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
✓
Enable AWS CloudTrail in all accounts with a trail that logs management events and delivers to a centralized S3 bucket. Use Amazon CloudWatch Events to create a rule that matches root user API calls and sends notifications via Amazon SNS.
It combines AWS CloudTrail logging of management events across all accounts into a centralized S3 bucket with Amazon CloudWatch Events (now Amazon EventBridge) to detect root user API calls in real time. This setup ensures immediate notification via Amazon SNS, meeting the requirement for instant reporting without manual polling or batch processing.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Enable AWS CloudTrail and use Amazon Athena to query logs periodically and send a report.
Why it's wrong here
This is not immediate.
- ✓
Enable AWS CloudTrail in all accounts with a trail that logs management events and delivers to a centralized S3 bucket. Use Amazon CloudWatch Events to create a rule that matches root user API calls and sends notifications via Amazon SNS.
Why this is correct
This provides real-time alerting on root activities.
- ✗
Use AWS Config rules to detect root user activities and trigger an AWS Lambda function to send an email.
Why it's wrong here
Config is not real-time and may have delays.
- ✗
Use AWS Trusted Advisor to check for root user usage and generate a weekly report.
Why it's wrong here
Weekly is not immediate.
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
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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. Drag and drop the steps to set up AWS CloudTrail for logging API activity in the correct order.
medium- ✓ A.Create an S3 bucket, then create the trail, then configure events, then enable security features, then verify delivery.
- B.Create the trail, then configure events, then create an S3 bucket, then enable security features, then verify delivery.
- C.Create an S3 bucket, then create the trail, then enable security features, then configure events, then verify delivery.
- D.Create an S3 bucket, then configure events, then create the trail, then enable security features, then verify delivery.
Why A: First create the S3 bucket, then create the trail, configure events, enable security features, and verify delivery.
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.