SAP-C02 Design for New Solutions Practice Question
Which TWO actions improve the security of an Amazon S3 bucket that stores sensitive data?
⚠ Common exam trap
The SAP-C02 exam often tests the misconception that enabling S3 Transfer Acceleration or CORS improves security, when in fact they are performance and cross-origin features respectively, not security controls.
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 S3 server access logging.
Enabling S3 Block Public Access (Option C) is a critical security control that prevents any public access to the bucket, regardless of bucket policies or object ACLs, effectively eliminating the risk of unintended data exposure. Enabling S3 server access logging (Option B) records all requests made to the bucket, providing an audit trail that can be used to detect unauthorized access attempts, troubleshoot security events, and meet compliance requirements. Both actions directly enhance the security posture of a bucket storing sensitive data.
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 CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing).
Why it's wrong here
CORS is for web browsers, not security.
- ✓
Enable S3 server access logging.
Why this is correct
Provides audit trail for access requests.
- ✓
Enable S3 Block Public Access.
Why this is correct
Prevents any public access to the bucket.
- ✗
Enable S3 Transfer Acceleration.
Why it's wrong here
Improves transfer speed, not security.
- ✗
Use a bucket policy that denies access to all principals except the root user.
Why it's wrong here
Too restrictive; not a security best practice.
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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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.