SCS-C02 Threat Detection and Incident Response Practice Question
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 receives an Amazon GuardDuty finding for 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/SSHBruteForce'. The engineer needs to automatically isolate the compromised EC2 instance and then perform forensic analysis. Which solution meets these requirements with the LEAST operational overhead?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "least"
Why it matters: You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
Manually SSH into the instance, stop it, and create an AMI for analysis.
Why wrong: This is manual, disrupts forensics, and is not automated.
B
Create an Amazon EventBridge rule that triggers an AWS Lambda function to isolate the instance by modifying its security group and then take a forensic snapshot.
Automated response with minimal operational overhead.
C
Use AWS Config rules to automatically stop the instance.
Why wrong: AWS Config is for compliance, not real-time threat response.
D
Configure an Auto Scaling lifecycle hook to terminate the instance and launch a new one.
Why wrong: Terminating loses forensic data; not ideal.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create an Amazon EventBridge rule that triggers an AWS Lambda function to isolate the instance by modifying its security group and then take a forensic snapshot.
Option B is correct because it automates the isolation and forensic capture of the compromised EC2 instance with minimal operational overhead. An Amazon EventBridge rule listens for the specific GuardDuty finding and triggers an AWS Lambda function that modifies the instance's security group to deny all inbound/outbound traffic (isolation) and then creates an EBS snapshot for forensic analysis. This serverless, event-driven approach eliminates manual intervention and ensures consistent, rapid response.
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.
✗
Manually SSH into the instance, stop it, and create an AMI for analysis.
Why it's wrong here
This is manual, disrupts forensics, and is not automated.
✓
Create an Amazon EventBridge rule that triggers an AWS Lambda function to isolate the instance by modifying its security group and then take a forensic snapshot.
Why this is correct
Automated response with minimal operational overhead.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "least" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Use AWS Config rules to automatically stop the instance.
Why it's wrong here
AWS Config is for compliance, not real-time threat response.
✗
Configure an Auto Scaling lifecycle hook to terminate the instance and launch a new one.
Why it's wrong here
Terminating loses forensic data; not ideal.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may assume manual SSH or AWS Config rules are sufficient for incident response, but they fail to recognize that GuardDuty findings require automated, event-driven isolation without human intervention, and that Config rules lack the ability to trigger real-time security group modifications or snapshots.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, the EventBridge rule uses a pattern matching the GuardDuty finding type 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/SSHBruteForce' and sends the finding detail to a Lambda function. The Lambda function uses the AWS SDK to revoke all existing security group rules and add a deny-all rule (e.g., a custom security group with no inbound/outbound rules), effectively isolating the instance at the network layer. It then calls the EC2 CreateSnapshot API on the instance's root and data volumes, ensuring a point-in-time forensic copy is preserved even if the instance is later terminated. A subtle behavior: if the instance is in a VPC with a network ACL, the security group change alone may not fully isolate it; the Lambda should also modify the network ACL or use a dedicated isolation security group that explicitly denies all traffic.
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 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
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 an Amazon EventBridge rule that triggers an AWS Lambda function to isolate the instance by modifying its security group and then take a forensic snapshot. — Option B is correct because it automates the isolation and forensic capture of the compromised EC2 instance with minimal operational overhead. An Amazon EventBridge rule listens for the specific GuardDuty finding and triggers an AWS Lambda function that modifies the instance's security group to deny all inbound/outbound traffic (isolation) and then creates an EBS snapshot for forensic analysis. This serverless, event-driven approach eliminates manual intervention and ensures consistent, rapid response.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "least". You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
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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