SCS-C02 Infrastructure Security Practice Question
A company has a VPC with public and private subnets. An EC2 instance in a private subnet needs to access an S3 bucket to store logs. The security team wants to ensure that traffic does not traverse the internet. Which solution should be used? (Choose two.)
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse Gateway Endpoints with Interface Endpoints, assuming both are equally valid for S3, but Gateway Endpoints are the correct and cost-effective choice for S3 access from private subnets, while Interface Endpoints are used for services like API Gateway or Kinesis.
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
✓
Create an S3 Gateway Endpoint in the VPC
A VPC Gateway Endpoint (option A) allows instances in a private subnet to access S3 without traversing the internet by routing traffic through AWS's internal network. This is the correct foundational component because it uses prefix lists in the route table to direct S3 traffic to the endpoint, bypassing the need for an Internet Gateway or NAT Gateway.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Create an S3 Gateway Endpoint in the VPC
Why this is correct
Provides private connectivity to S3.
- ✓
Attach a VPC Endpoint Policy to the Gateway Endpoint to restrict access to the specific bucket
Why this is correct
Controls access to the S3 bucket.
- ✗
Attach an Internet Gateway to the VPC
Why it's wrong here
Would route to internet.
- ✗
Create an S3 Interface Endpoint in the VPC
Why it's wrong here
S3 does not support Interface Endpoints.
- ✗
Use a NAT Gateway to route the traffic to the internet
Why it's wrong here
Would use internet, not private.
Visual reference
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
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This SCS-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 SCS-C02 exam.