The correct answer is to create a suppression rule for findings originating from the vulnerability scanner's IP address. This works because GuardDuty suppression rules allow you to filter out specific findings based on criteria like source IP, automatically archiving and suppressing future matches without disabling the detector or any finding types. On the AWS Certified Security Specialty SCS-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how to reduce GuardDuty false positives from SSH brute force activity caused by legitimate internal tools, a common trap where candidates might mistakenly disable the entire finding type or the detector itself. Remember that suppression rules are granular and reversible, while disabling findings is a blunt instrument. A helpful memory tip: suppress the source, not the signal.
SCS-C02 Threat Detection and Incident Response Practice Question
This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of threat detection and incident response. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 using Amazon GuardDuty to detect threats. They notice that GuardDuty is generating a high volume of 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/SSHBruteForce' findings from an internal EC2 instance that is used for vulnerability scanning. The security team wants to reduce false positives without disabling GuardDuty entirely. What should they do?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create a suppression rule for findings originating from the vulnerability scanner's IP address.
Option D is correct because Amazon GuardDuty's suppression rules allow you to filter out findings based on criteria such as IP address, without disabling the detector or any finding types. By creating a suppression rule that matches the vulnerability scanner's IP address, you automatically archive and suppress future 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/SSHBruteForce' findings from that specific source, reducing false positives while maintaining full threat detection coverage for all other instances.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Change the security group of the vulnerability scanner to block SSH traffic.
Why it's wrong here
This would not stop GuardDuty from detecting the activity; it would just prevent the brute force from succeeding.
✗
Disable GuardDuty for the subnet where the vulnerability scanner is located.
Why it's wrong here
GuardDuty does not support disabling per subnet; it operates at the account level.
✗
Disable the 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/SSHBruteForce' finding type in GuardDuty.
Why it's wrong here
Disabling the finding type would suppress all such findings, including real threats.
✓
Create a suppression rule for findings originating from the vulnerability scanner's IP address.
Why this is correct
Suppression rules allow you to automatically archive findings from trusted sources, reducing false positives.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse suppression rules with disabling finding types or disabling GuardDuty entirely, not realizing that suppression rules provide a granular, IP-based mechanism to reduce noise without compromising overall security coverage.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
GuardDuty suppression rules operate at the finding level, using criteria such as source IP, instance ID, or finding type to automatically archive matching findings. The suppression is applied before the finding is stored, meaning it never appears in the GuardDuty console or triggers any downstream integrations (e.g., EventBridge, Security Hub). This is distinct from a filter, which only hides findings from the console view but does not prevent them from being generated or triggering automated responses.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
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
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
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
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Threat Detection and Incident Response — This question tests Threat Detection and Incident Response — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create a suppression rule for findings originating from the vulnerability scanner's IP address. — Option D is correct because Amazon GuardDuty's suppression rules allow you to filter out findings based on criteria such as IP address, without disabling the detector or any finding types. By creating a suppression rule that matches the vulnerability scanner's IP address, you automatically archive and suppress future 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/SSHBruteForce' findings from that specific source, reducing false positives while maintaining full threat detection coverage for all other instances.
What should I do if I get this SCS-C02 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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