This PAS-C01 practice question tests your understanding of operations and maintenance. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. A key principle to apply: explicit Deny. 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.
An operations team uses this IAM policy for a role assumed by SAP administrators. An administrator tries to stop a production SAP HANA instance in the us-west-2 region but receives an access denied error. What is the cause?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The Deny statement with a condition on aws:RequestedRegion prevents actions outside us-east-1.
The correct answer is D. The Deny statement includes a condition using aws:RequestedRegion that blocks any action unless the request is made in us-east-1. Since the administrator's request is in us-west-2, the condition fails and the Deny applies, causing the access denied error. Option A is incorrect because the Allow statement's resource ARN is for us-east-1, but the Deny overrides the Allow; the resource region is not the primary issue. Option B is incorrect because even if the instance has the tag, the Deny still overrides. Option C is incorrect because the Deny does not require a tag; it checks the region.
Key principle: Explicit Deny
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
The Allow statement's resource ARN specifies us-east-1, but the instance is in us-west-2.
Why it's wrong here
The resource ARN uses a wildcard for instance ID, not region.
✗
The Allow statement only permits stopping instances with the tag Environment=production, and the instance does not have that tag.
Why it's wrong here
The error is not about tags; the deny applies regardless.
✗
The Deny statement requires the resource to have a specific tag, which is missing.
Why it's wrong here
The Deny statement does not include a tag condition.
✓
The Deny statement with a condition on aws:RequestedRegion prevents actions outside us-east-1.
Why this is correct
The condition denies all actions if the request is not in us-east-1.
Related concept
Explicit Deny
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Candidates often focus on the Allow statement's region-specific resource ARN and overlook the Deny statement's condition on aws:RequestedRegion, which explicitly blocks all actions outside us-east-1.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Treat this as a scenario question. Identify the problem, the constraint, and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Explicit Deny
aws:RequestedRegion
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
Explicit Deny
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review explicit Deny, then practise related PAS-C01 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
Operations and Maintenance — This question tests Operations and Maintenance — Explicit Deny.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The Deny statement with a condition on aws:RequestedRegion prevents actions outside us-east-1. — The correct answer is D. The Deny statement includes a condition using aws:RequestedRegion that blocks any action unless the request is made in us-east-1. Since the administrator's request is in us-west-2, the condition fails and the Deny applies, causing the access denied error. Option A is incorrect because the Allow statement's resource ARN is for us-east-1, but the Deny overrides the Allow; the resource region is not the primary issue. Option B is incorrect because even if the instance has the tag, the Deny still overrides. Option C is incorrect because the Deny does not require a tag; it checks the region.
What should I do if I get this PAS-C01 question wrong?
Review explicit Deny, then practise related PAS-C01 questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Explicit Deny
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Question Discussion
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