SCS-C02 Infrastructure Security Practice Question
A company has an AWS Direct Connect connection to its on-premises data center. The security team wants to ensure that traffic between the VPC and the data center is encrypted. Which solution should they use?
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
✓
Set up an IPsec VPN connection over the Direct Connect virtual interface.
AWS Direct Connect does not encrypt traffic by default. To encrypt, you can use an IPsec VPN over the Direct Connect virtual interface (option A). Option B is incorrect because Direct Connect does not support native encryption on the virtual interface; encryption must be added via IPsec or application-level encryption. Option C is not optimal because the requirement specifies using the existing Direct Connect connection, not internet-based VPN. Option D is incorrect because VPC Peering connects VPCs within AWS, not an on-premises data center, and does not provide encryption.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Set up an IPsec VPN connection over the Direct Connect virtual interface.
Why this is correct
A Direct Connect virtual interface provides a dedicated, low-latency network path, but it does not encrypt traffic on its own. By configuring an IPsec VPN session over that virtual interface, you can encapsulate all packets in an encrypted tunnel between the on-premises edge and the AWS VPN endpoint, meeting compliance requirements while retaining Direct Connect's performance and reliability benefits.
- ✗
Enable encryption on the Direct Connect virtual interface.
Why it's wrong here
Direct Connect offers no native encryption mechanism at the virtual interface layer; the VIF simply forwards Ethernet/IP packets in clear text between the on-premises router and AWS. AWS does not expose a setting to 'enable encryption' on a VIF, so any encryption must be implemented as an overlay protocol above the link, such as IPsec. Consequently, this option is not technically feasible as a standalone configuration.
- ✗
Use AWS Site-to-Site VPN over the internet.
Why it's wrong here
AWS Site-to-Site VPN over the public internet uses a customer gateway on-premises and a VPN gateway in the VPC, tunneling traffic across the internet with IPsec. While this does provide encryption, it abandons the existing Direct Connect link entirely, introducing internet-dependent latency, jitter, and potential reliability issues. Since the scenario explicitly focuses on using an existing Direct Connect connection, routing traffic over the internet is not an appropriate solution.
- ✗
Use VPC Peering to connect the VPC to the data center.
Why it's wrong here
VPC peering connects two VPCs in AWS using private IP addressing, but it cannot extend into an external data center or on-premises network. The feature is non-transitive and allows no routing over the internet or to a local network. Therefore, VPC peering cannot satisfy a requirement to connect a VPC to an on-premises data center.
Quick reference
VPN Protocol Comparison
| Protocol | Port | Encryption | Authentication | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEv2 / IPsec | UDP 500 / 4500 | AES-256 | Certificates / PSK | Site-to-site & remote access |
| SSL / TLS VPN | TCP 443 | TLS 1.3 | Certificates / MFA | Clientless remote access |
| L2TP / IPsec | UDP 1701 | AES (IPsec) | PSK / Certificates | Legacy remote access |
| WireGuard | UDP 51820 | ChaCha20 | Public keys | Modern high-performance VPN |
| PPTP | TCP 1723 | MPPE (weak) | MS-CHAPv2 | Legacy — avoid in production |
PPTP is considered insecure. IKEv2/IPsec and SSL VPN are the current recommended options.
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.