Quick Answer
The answer is AWS CloudTrail. CloudTrail is the correct choice because it records all API activity in your AWS account, capturing every IAM policy change made through the console, CLI, SDKs, or other services as detailed event logs. This provides a complete, immutable audit trail of who made the change, when it occurred, and what the request parameters were, which is essential for auditing IAM policy changes. On the AWS Certified Security Specialty SCS-C02 exam, this question tests your understanding of the distinction between detective controls—CloudTrail for recording changes—and preventive controls like IAM or SCPs. A common trap is confusing CloudTrail with AWS Config, which tracks resource configuration changes over time but does not capture the API-level detail of who made the request. Remember the memory tip: CloudTrail is the “who, what, when” recorder, while Config is the “what changed” snapshotter.
This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security logging and monitoring. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. 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.
A company is required to audit all changes to IAM policies. Which AWS service should be used to record these changes?
AWS Config
Why wrong: Config records resource configuration snapshots, not API calls.
Amazon CloudWatch Logs
Why wrong: CloudWatch Logs stores logs but does not generate them.
Amazon S3
Why wrong: S3 is a storage service, not a logging service.
AWS CloudTrail
CloudTrail records management events including IAM policy changes.
IAM Access Analyzer
Why wrong: Access Analyzer finds unused access, does not record changes.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
AWS CloudTrail
AWS CloudTrail is the correct service because it records API activity in your AWS account, including all IAM policy changes made via the AWS Management Console, SDKs, CLI, or AWS services. Each event is captured as a CloudTrail event with details such as the identity making the request, the time of the request, and the request parameters, enabling a complete audit trail of IAM policy modifications.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
AWS Config
Why it's wrong here
Config records resource configuration snapshots, not API calls.
Amazon CloudWatch Logs
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch Logs stores logs but does not generate them.
Amazon S3
Why it's wrong here
S3 is a storage service, not a logging service.
AWS CloudTrail
Why this is correct
CloudTrail records management events including IAM policy changes.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
IAM Access Analyzer
Why it's wrong here
Access Analyzer finds unused access, does not record changes.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse AWS Config's ability to track configuration changes with CloudTrail's ability to record API-level audit trails, but Config only shows the state of resources over time without the identity and context of who made the change.
Detailed technical explanation
CloudTrail records IAM policy changes as management events, which include operations like CreatePolicy, DeletePolicy, PutRolePolicy, and AttachRolePolicy. These events are delivered to an S3 bucket or CloudWatch Logs within approximately 15 minutes of the API call, and they include the full request and response details, enabling forensic analysis of policy modifications. A common real-world scenario is using CloudTrail to detect unauthorized changes to an IAM policy that grants excessive permissions, where the event's source IP address and user agent can help identify the responsible entity.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
What to study next
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FAQ
Security Logging and Monitoring — This question tests Security Logging and Monitoring — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: AWS CloudTrail — AWS CloudTrail is the correct service because it records API activity in your AWS account, including all IAM policy changes made via the AWS Management Console, SDKs, CLI, or AWS services. Each event is captured as a CloudTrail event with details such as the identity making the request, the time of the request, and the request parameters, enabling a complete audit trail of IAM policy modifications.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
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.
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