The primary purpose of the `aws:SourceOrgID` condition in an S3 bucket policy is to restrict access exclusively to principals from accounts that belong to a specific AWS Organization. This condition key, more accurately written as `aws:PrincipalOrgID`, works by evaluating the organization ID attached to the requesting principal’s account, ensuring that only requests originating from accounts within that organization are allowed—even if the individual IAM user or role has explicit permissions elsewhere. On the AWS Certified Solutions Architect Professional SAP-C02 exam, this concept tests your understanding of cross-account security boundaries and how to prevent unauthorized access from accounts outside your organization, a common trap being confusion with `aws:SourceAccount` or `aws:SourceArn`, which apply to service-to-service calls rather than principal identity. A reliable memory tip is to think of `PrincipalOrgID` as the “organizational passport check”—it verifies the account’s membership in your org before granting access, making it essential for securing sensitive logs shared across multiple accounts.
SAP-C02 Practice Question: Design Solutions for Organizational Complexity
This SAP-C02 practice question tests your understanding of design solutions for organizational complexity. 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.
Refer to the exhibit. A security engineer is reviewing this S3 bucket policy. The bucket is used to store sensitive logs from multiple accounts in an AWS Organization. What is the primary purpose of the condition element in this policy?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "primary"
Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
To ensure that only requests originating from accounts within the specified organization are allowed.
The condition element in this S3 bucket policy uses the `aws:PrincipalOrgID` condition key to restrict access to principals (users or roles) that belong to accounts within the specified AWS Organization. This ensures that only requests from accounts that are members of the organization are allowed, even if the IAM principal has explicit permissions. This is the primary purpose of the condition, as it enforces organizational boundaries for cross-account access to sensitive logs.
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.
✓
To ensure that only requests originating from accounts within the specified organization are allowed.
Why this is correct
The aws:SourceOrgID condition checks the organization ID.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
To restrict access to only the root user of the management account.
Why it's wrong here
The condition uses OrgID, not root user.
✗
To enforce that all requests are made using HTTPS.
Why it's wrong here
The condition does not check encryption.
✗
To allow access only from specific IP addresses within the organization.
Why it's wrong here
The condition does not check IP addresses.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse `aws:PrincipalOrgID` with other condition keys like `aws:SourceIp` or `aws:SecureTransport`, or assume it restricts to the management account root user, when in fact it validates organization membership for any principal in the organization.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The `aws:PrincipalOrgID` condition key evaluates the organization ID (e.g., `o-a1b2c3d4e5`) of the requesting principal's account. This key is available only when the account is part of an AWS Organization, and it works across all AWS services that support IAM policies. A subtle behavior is that this condition does not check the organizational unit (OU) — it only validates membership in the organization, so if finer-grained control is needed, you must combine it with `aws:PrincipalOrgPaths`.
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.
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.
Design Solutions for Organizational Complexity — This question tests Design Solutions for Organizational Complexity — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: To ensure that only requests originating from accounts within the specified organization are allowed. — The condition element in this S3 bucket policy uses the `aws:PrincipalOrgID` condition key to restrict access to principals (users or roles) that belong to accounts within the specified AWS Organization. This ensures that only requests from accounts that are members of the organization are allowed, even if the IAM principal has explicit permissions. This is the primary purpose of the condition, as it enforces organizational boundaries for cross-account access to sensitive logs.
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: "primary". Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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