SCS-C03 Data Protection Practice Question
A company stores sensitive PII in RDS MySQL databases. The security team wants to ensure that data is encrypted at rest and that the encryption keys are rotated annually. Which TWO actions fulfill these requirements?
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 RDS encryption using a customer-managed key during instance creation.
Enabling RDS encryption at the time of instance creation is mandatory for at-rest protection, as this cannot be added to an existing unencrypted instance. Additionally, using AWS KMS customer-managed keys allows the administrator to control the rotation schedule manually or via automatic rotation features, ensuring the underlying cryptographic material is refreshed regularly to maintain compliance and reduce the potential impact of a compromised key.
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 RDS encryption using an AWS managed key and configure annual rotation.
Why it's wrong here
AWS managed keys have their own rotation schedules that cannot be modified by the user. To enforce a specific annual rotation requirement, you must use a customer-managed KMS key, which provides the necessary configuration flexibility for your organization's specific compliance and security policy standards.
- ✓
Enable RDS encryption using a customer-managed key during instance creation.
Why this is correct
Enabling encryption during the RDS instance launch is the only way to ensure the underlying storage volume is encrypted. By selecting a customer-managed key, you gain the authority to manage the key's lifecycle, including setting the necessary rotation policies to meet your specific security requirements.
- ✓
Configure the customer-managed KMS key to perform automatic annual key rotation.
Why this is correct
Customer-managed keys support automatic rotation, which periodically generates new backing key material. This process is transparent to RDS and ensures the data remains protected. Configuring this for your customer-managed key fulfills the requirement to keep the cryptographic material refreshed on an annual basis without manual intervention.
- ✗
Modify the existing RDS instance to enable encryption after the initial launch.
Why it's wrong here
RDS does not allow enabling encryption on an existing unencrypted database instance. If an instance was created without encryption, you must create a snapshot, copy it with encryption enabled, and restore the snapshot to a new instance to apply the necessary data-at-rest protection measures.
- ✗
Enable Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) via the RDS option group.
Why it's wrong here
While TDE is a feature for some database engines, it is not the standard or recommended approach for AWS RDS encryption. AWS KMS-based storage encryption provides a more integrated, scalable, and audit-friendly solution that covers the entire storage volume, including logs and backups, automatically.
About these practice questions
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Amazon Web Services exam blueprint
This SCS-C03 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 SCS-C03 exam.