This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of threat detection and incident response. 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 security engineer is configuring an automated response to a GuardDuty finding that indicates a compromised EC2 instance. The engineer wants to isolate the instance by changing its security group to a 'quarantine' group. Which AWS service is BEST suited to automate this response?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
AWS Step Functions
Why wrong: Not the trigger; can orchestrate but triggers via EventBridge.
AWS Config
Why wrong: Config is not for real-time response.
Amazon EventBridge
EventBridge can trigger a Lambda function on GuardDuty findings.
AWS Systems Manager Automation
Why wrong: Can respond but not event-driven by default.
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 EventBridge
Amazon EventBridge is the best choice because it can directly receive GuardDuty findings as events and trigger an automated response, such as invoking a Lambda function or Systems Manager Automation runbook to change the EC2 instance's security group to a quarantine group. EventBridge provides native integration with GuardDuty via its default event bus, enabling real-time, event-driven automation without additional orchestration overhead.
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 Step Functions
Why it's wrong here
Not the trigger; can orchestrate but triggers via EventBridge.
AWS Config
Why it's wrong here
Config is not for real-time response.
Amazon EventBridge
Why this is correct
EventBridge can trigger a Lambda function on GuardDuty findings.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
AWS Systems Manager Automation
Why it's wrong here
Can respond but not event-driven by default.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often confuse AWS Systems Manager Automation as the primary automation service, forgetting that it requires an event source like EventBridge to trigger it, making EventBridge the correct answer for the 'best suited' service to automate the response directly from GuardDuty.
Detailed technical explanation
GuardDuty sends findings to the default event bus in EventBridge as structured JSON events with a detail-type of 'GuardDuty Finding'. EventBridge rules can then match specific finding types (e.g., 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/SSHBruteForce') and route them to targets like Lambda, SQS, or Systems Manager Automation runbooks. This event-driven architecture ensures sub-second latency for initiating isolation, whereas polling-based approaches would introduce delays and complexity.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
What to study next
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FAQ
Threat Detection and Incident Response — This question tests Threat Detection and Incident Response — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Amazon EventBridge — Amazon EventBridge is the best choice because it can directly receive GuardDuty findings as events and trigger an automated response, such as invoking a Lambda function or Systems Manager Automation runbook to change the EC2 instance's security group to a quarantine group. EventBridge provides native integration with GuardDuty via its default event bus, enabling real-time, event-driven automation without additional orchestration overhead.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
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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