This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of identity and access management. 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 uses AWS Organizations to manage multiple accounts. The security team wants to ensure that no IAM user in any account can create access keys. Which policy type should be used to enforce this restriction across all accounts?
IAM identity-based policy
Why wrong: Applied only to specific IAM users/groups/roles, not across all accounts.
Resource-based policy
Why wrong: Attached to resources, not to users.
Permissions boundary
Why wrong: Sets maximum permissions for a user/role but can be overridden by other policies.
Service Control Policy (SCP)
SCPs can deny actions at the account level for all principals.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Service Control Policy (SCP)
Option B is correct because a Service Control Policy (SCP) can be applied at the organization level to deny actions across all member accounts. Option A is an IAM policy that applies only to specific users. Option C is for permissions boundaries, but it's per-user and not automatically enforced. Option D is for resource-based policies.
Key principle: ACLs process entries top to bottom and stop at the first match. Entry order and interface direction matter as much as the permit or deny statement.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
IAM identity-based policy
Why it's wrong here
Applied only to specific IAM users/groups/roles, not across all accounts.
Resource-based policy
Why it's wrong here
Attached to resources, not to users.
Permissions boundary
Why it's wrong here
Sets maximum permissions for a user/role but can be overridden by other policies.
Service Control Policy (SCP)
Why this is correct
SCPs can deny actions at the account level for all principals.
Related concept
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
Common exam traps
ACLs are processed top to bottom. The first matching entry wins, and an implicit deny usually exists at the end.
Detailed technical explanation
ACL questions test precision: source, destination, protocol, port and direction. A generally correct ACL can still fail if it is applied on the wrong interface or in the wrong direction.
Key takeaway
ACLs process entries top to bottom and stop at the first match. Entry order and interface direction matter as much as the permit or deny statement.
Real-world example
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
Review ACL processing order, placement rules (standard near destination, extended near source), and inbound vs outbound direction. Study wildcard masks and implicit deny. Then practise related SCS-C02 ACL questions on filtering logic and placement.
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FAQ
Identity and Access Management — This question tests Identity and Access Management — Standard ACLs match source addresses..
The correct answer is: Service Control Policy (SCP) — Option B is correct because a Service Control Policy (SCP) can be applied at the organization level to deny actions across all member accounts. Option A is an IAM policy that applies only to specific users. Option C is for permissions boundaries, but it's per-user and not automatically enforced. Option D is for resource-based policies.
Review ACL processing order, placement rules (standard near destination, extended near source), and inbound vs outbound direction. Study wildcard masks and implicit deny. Then practise related SCS-C02 ACL questions on filtering logic and placement.
Standard ACLs match source addresses.
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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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