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Question 685 of 1,748

Infrastructure Security →hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

SCS-C02 Infrastructure Security Practice Question

This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of infrastructure security. 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 reviewing the following IAM policy attached to an S3 bucket:

{
  "Version": "2012-10-17",
  "Statement": [
    {
      "Effect": "Allow",
      "Principal": "*",
      "Action": "s3:GetObject",
      "Resource": "arn:aws:s3:::example-bucket/*",
      "Condition": {
        "IpAddress": {

"aws:SourceIp": "10.0.0.0/8"

}
      }
    }
  ]
}

The bucket contains sensitive data and should only be accessible from the corporate network (CIDR 10.0.0.0/8). However, the engineer is concerned that this policy might not be effective. What is the primary security concern with this policy?

Clue words in this question

Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.

Clue: "primary"
Why it matters: Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.

A
The bucket policy does not include a Deny statement for requests outside the IP range, so the default allow might still permit access from other IPs.
Why wrong: The default is Deny, so only the Allow applies. But the Allow is broad within the IP range.
B
The policy grants public access to the bucket because the Principal is "*", allowing anyone from the specified IP range to access objects.
Any user from the allowed IP range can access the bucket, which is essentially public access to that network.
C
The condition key aws:SourceIp only evaluates the IP address of the client, but if the request comes through a proxy, the IP might not match.
Why wrong: While proxies can affect IP, the primary concern is that the bucket is effectively public to anyone within the IP range.
D
The policy uses s3:GetObject but does not include s3:ListBucket, so users cannot see the object list, but they can guess object keys.
Why wrong: This is a secondary concern; the primary concern is that the bucket is accessible to anyone in the corporate network.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

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

✓

The policy grants public access to the bucket because the Principal is "*", allowing anyone from the specified IP range to access objects.

Option B is correct because the bucket policy uses `"Principal": "*"` combined with `"Effect": "Allow"`, which explicitly grants public access to anyone who meets the condition. While the condition restricts access to the `10.0.0.0/8` IP range, the policy itself is still a public bucket policy — it allows any authenticated or unauthenticated user from that IP range to read objects. This violates the principle of least privilege and exposes sensitive data to any user on the corporate network, not just authorized IAM roles or users.

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.

✗
The bucket policy does not include a Deny statement for requests outside the IP range, so the default allow might still permit access from other IPs.
Why it's wrong here
The default is Deny, so only the Allow applies. But the Allow is broad within the IP range.
✓
The policy grants public access to the bucket because the Principal is "*", allowing anyone from the specified IP range to access objects.
Why this is correct
Any user from the allowed IP range can access the bucket, which is essentially public access to that network.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "primary" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The condition key aws:SourceIp only evaluates the IP address of the client, but if the request comes through a proxy, the IP might not match.
Why it's wrong here
While proxies can affect IP, the primary concern is that the bucket is effectively public to anyone within the IP range.
✗
The policy uses s3:GetObject but does not include s3:ListBucket, so users cannot see the object list, but they can guess object keys.
Why it's wrong here
This is a secondary concern; the primary concern is that the bucket is accessible to anyone in the corporate network.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates focus on the IP restriction condition and assume it makes the policy secure, overlooking the fact that `"Principal": "*"` still makes the bucket publicly accessible to any user within that IP range, which is a direct violation of AWS shared responsibility and least privilege principles.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

Under the hood, S3 bucket policies with `"Principal": "*"` are considered public, regardless of any conditions attached. AWS defines a bucket as 'public' if it grants access to all authenticated or unauthenticated users via a bucket policy or ACL. Even with an IP restriction, the policy still allows any user on the internet who happens to be within the `10.0.0.0/8` range (e.g., a VPN user or an attacker spoofing an internal IP) to access objects. In a real-world scenario, an attacker who gains a foothold on the corporate network could exfiltrate all objects without needing any AWS credentials.

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 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.

Visual reference

Quick reference

AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison

Storage Class	Min Duration	Retrieval	Use Case
S3 Standard	None	Immediate	Frequently accessed data
S3 Standard-IA	30 days	Immediate	Infrequent access, rapid retrieval
S3 One Zone-IA	30 days	Immediate	Non-critical infrequent data
S3 Intelligent-Tiering	None	Immediate–hours	Unknown or changing access patterns
S3 Glacier Instant	90 days	Milliseconds	Archive with instant retrieval
S3 Glacier Flexible	90 days	Minutes–hours	Archive, flexible retrieval
S3 Glacier Deep Archive	180 days	Hours	Long-term compliance archive

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.

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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: The policy grants public access to the bucket because the Principal is "*", allowing anyone from the specified IP range to access objects. — Option B is correct because the bucket policy uses `"Principal": "*"` combined with `"Effect": "Allow"`, which explicitly grants public access to anyone who meets the condition. While the condition restricts access to the `10.0.0.0/8` IP range, the policy itself is still a public bucket policy — it allows any authenticated or unauthenticated user from that IP range to read objects. This violates the principle of least privilege and exposes sensitive data to any user on the corporate network, not just authorized IAM roles or users.

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: "primary". Asks for the main purpose or function, not a secondary benefit. Eliminate answers that describe side-effects or partial functions.

What is the key concept behind this question?

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

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