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 runs a web application on EC2 instances behind an Application Load Balancer (ALB). The security team wants to analyze web request logs to identify potential SQL injection attacks. Which AWS service should be used to collect and analyze the ALB access logs?
VPC Flow Logs
Why wrong: Flow Logs capture network metadata, not HTTP request details.
AWS WAF
Why wrong: WAF provides firewall but does not analyze stored logs.
Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights
Why wrong: CloudWatch Logs Insights queries CloudWatch Logs, but ALB access logs are usually stored in S3.
Amazon Athena
Athena can query ALB access logs in S3 with SQL to detect SQL injection patterns.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Amazon Athena
Option D is correct because Amazon Athena can query ALB access logs stored in S3 using standard SQL, allowing analysis for SQL injection patterns. Option A is wrong because Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights can query CloudWatch Logs but ALB access logs are typically stored in S3, not CloudWatch Logs. Option B is wrong because VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic metadata, not HTTP request details. Option C is wrong because AWS WAF provides web application firewall capabilities but does not analyze stored logs; it can generate logs but analysis would require another service like Athena.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
VPC Flow Logs
Why it's wrong here
Flow Logs capture network metadata, not HTTP request details.
AWS WAF
Why it's wrong here
WAF provides firewall but does not analyze stored logs.
Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch Logs Insights queries CloudWatch Logs, but ALB access logs are usually stored in S3.
Amazon Athena
Why this is correct
Athena can query ALB access logs in S3 with SQL to detect SQL injection patterns.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
Common exam traps
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
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
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related SCS-C02 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
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FAQ
Security Logging and Monitoring — This question tests Security Logging and Monitoring — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
The correct answer is: Amazon Athena — Option D is correct because Amazon Athena can query ALB access logs stored in S3 using standard SQL, allowing analysis for SQL injection patterns. Option A is wrong because Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights can query CloudWatch Logs but ALB access logs are typically stored in S3, not CloudWatch Logs. Option B is wrong because VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic metadata, not HTTP request details. Option C is wrong because AWS WAF provides web application firewall capabilities but does not analyze stored logs; it can generate logs but analysis would require another service like Athena.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related SCS-C02 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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Last reviewed: Jun 20, 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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