- A
Place a NAT Gateway in a public subnet and route the EC2 instance's traffic through it
NAT Gateway enables outbound-only internet access.
- B
Use a Virtual Private Gateway and connect to a VPN
Why wrong: This does not provide internet access.
- C
Attach an Internet Gateway and add a route 0.0.0.0/0 to the EC2 instance's route table
Why wrong: This would also allow inbound traffic if not restricted.
- D
Use a VPC Peering connection to an external VPC with internet access
Why wrong: VPC Peering does not provide internet access.
Question 1,330 of 1,748
SCS-C02 Infrastructure Security Practice Question
This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of infrastructure security. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 wants to allow an EC2 instance in a VPC to download patches from the internet but block all other outbound traffic. Which configuration should be used?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Place a NAT Gateway in a public subnet and route the EC2 instance's traffic through it
A NAT Gateway in a public subnet allows outbound traffic from private subnets to the internet while preventing inbound traffic from the internet. By routing the EC2 instance's traffic through the NAT Gateway, the instance can download patches (outbound) but cannot be reached from the internet, satisfying the requirement to block all other outbound traffic (i.e., only patch downloads are allowed, but the NAT Gateway itself does not filter by destination; additional security group or NACL rules would be needed to restrict to patch servers only).
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.
- ✓
Place a NAT Gateway in a public subnet and route the EC2 instance's traffic through it
- ✗
Use a Virtual Private Gateway and connect to a VPN
Why it's wrong here
This does not provide internet access.
- ✗
Attach an Internet Gateway and add a route 0.0.0.0/0 to the EC2 instance's route table
Why it's wrong here
This would also allow inbound traffic if not restricted.
- ✗
Use a VPC Peering connection to an external VPC with internet access
Why it's wrong here
VPC Peering does not provide internet access.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse NAT Gateway with Internet Gateway, thinking an Internet Gateway is needed for outbound-only access, but an Internet Gateway allows bidirectional traffic, while a NAT Gateway provides outbound-only internet access from private subnets.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, a NAT Gateway uses source network address translation (SNAT) to map private IPs to its Elastic IP, so return traffic is directed back to the NAT Gateway, which then forwards it to the private instance. A common subtlety is that NAT Gateways do not support IP fragmentation or certain protocols like ICMP, which can affect patch downloads using FTP or custom protocols. In real-world scenarios, you would combine the NAT Gateway with a security group that allows outbound HTTPS (port 443) only to specific patch server IPs or domains, and a network ACL to deny all other outbound 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.
Visual reference
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SCS-C02 question test?
Infrastructure Security — This question tests Infrastructure Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Place a NAT Gateway in a public subnet and route the EC2 instance's traffic through it — A NAT Gateway in a public subnet allows outbound traffic from private subnets to the internet while preventing inbound traffic from the internet. By routing the EC2 instance's traffic through the NAT Gateway, the instance can download patches (outbound) but cannot be reached from the internet, satisfying the requirement to block all other outbound traffic (i.e., only patch downloads are allowed, but the NAT Gateway itself does not filter by destination; additional security group or NACL rules would be needed to restrict to patch servers only).
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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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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