The answer is AWS CloudTrail and Amazon EventBridge (formerly CloudWatch Events). CloudTrail is the correct service because it records all IAM API calls as events, including actions like PutRolePolicy, CreateRole, or AttachRolePolicy, providing a complete audit trail of identity and access management changes. EventBridge then allows you to create rules that filter for these specific IAM events and route them to targets such as SNS for alerts or Lambda for automated remediation, making the combination ideal for real-time detection. On the AWS Certified Security Specialty SCS-C02 exam, this pairing tests your understanding of how to build a detective control for unauthorized privilege escalation or policy drift, a common scenario in security incident response questions. A frequent trap is confusing CloudTrail with AWS Config; remember that CloudTrail captures who made the change and when, while Config tracks configuration state over time. Memory tip: think "Trail for the tale, Bridge for the trigger."
SCS-C02 Security Logging and Monitoring Practice Question
This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security logging and monitoring. 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 wants to detect and alert on changes to IAM roles and policies in their AWS account. Which combination of AWS services should they use?
Why wrong: GuardDuty detects threats, not configuration changes; Shield is for DDoS protection.
B
Amazon CloudWatch Logs and AWS Lambda
Why wrong: CloudWatch Logs can store logs, but without CloudTrail, IAM changes would not be captured.
C
AWS CloudTrail and Amazon EventBridge (CloudWatch Events)
CloudTrail records IAM API calls, and EventBridge can create rules to match specific events and send alerts via SNS.
D
AWS Config and Amazon Inspector
Why wrong: AWS Config tracks resource configuration changes but is not optimal for real-time API call monitoring; Inspector is for vulnerability assessment.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
AWS CloudTrail and Amazon EventBridge (CloudWatch Events)
CloudTrail logs all IAM API calls, and CloudWatch Events (now Amazon EventBridge) can filter for specific events (e.g., PutRolePolicy) and trigger an SNS notification or Lambda function.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Amazon GuardDuty and AWS Shield
Why it's wrong here
GuardDuty detects threats, not configuration changes; Shield is for DDoS protection.
✗
Amazon CloudWatch Logs and AWS Lambda
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch Logs can store logs, but without CloudTrail, IAM changes would not be captured.
✓
AWS CloudTrail and Amazon EventBridge (CloudWatch Events)
Why this is correct
CloudTrail records IAM API calls, and EventBridge can create rules to match specific events and send alerts via SNS.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
✗
AWS Config and Amazon Inspector
Why it's wrong here
AWS Config tracks resource configuration changes but is not optimal for real-time API call monitoring; Inspector is for vulnerability assessment.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
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.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related SCS-C02 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Security Logging and Monitoring — This question tests Security Logging and Monitoring — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: AWS CloudTrail and Amazon EventBridge (CloudWatch Events) — CloudTrail logs all IAM API calls, and CloudWatch Events (now Amazon EventBridge) can filter for specific events (e.g., PutRolePolicy) and trigger an SNS notification or Lambda function.
What should I do if I get this SCS-C02 question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related SCS-C02 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
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.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.