- A
Enable AWS CloudTrail to monitor GetPublicAccessBlock calls.
Why wrong: CloudTrail logs API calls but does not evaluate policies for compliance.
- B
Use IAM Access Analyzer to review bucket policies for public access.
Access Analyzer can analyze resource policies to identify public access.
- C
Use Amazon Inspector to scan bucket policies.
Why wrong: Inspector is for EC2 instances and network assessments, not S3.
- D
Use AWS Config with the s3-bucket-public-read-prohibited managed rule.
This rule evaluates bucket policies and ACLs for public read access.
- E
Use AWS Trusted Advisor to check S3 bucket permissions.
Why wrong: Trusted Advisor provides checks but is not as comprehensive for per-bucket compliance; more of a best practice check.
Question 592 of 1,748
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 company wants to ensure that all Amazon S3 bucket policies comply with a security baseline that prohibits public read access. Which TWO methods can be used to detect non-compliant buckets? (Choose TWO.)
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
✓
Use IAM Access Analyzer to review bucket policies for public access.
IAM Access Analyzer reviews resource policies to identify resources shared with an external entity. For S3 buckets, it can analyze bucket policies and detect if they grant public read access (i.e., access to 'Principal': '*'). This directly identifies non-compliant buckets against the security baseline that prohibits public read access.
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.
- ✗
Enable AWS CloudTrail to monitor GetPublicAccessBlock calls.
Why it's wrong here
CloudTrail logs API calls but does not evaluate policies for compliance.
- ✓
Use IAM Access Analyzer to review bucket policies for public access.
Why this is correct
Access Analyzer can analyze resource policies to identify public access.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use Amazon Inspector to scan bucket policies.
Why it's wrong here
Inspector is for EC2 instances and network assessments, not S3.
- ✓
Use AWS Config with the s3-bucket-public-read-prohibited managed rule.
Why this is correct
This rule evaluates bucket policies and ACLs for public read access.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use AWS Trusted Advisor to check S3 bucket permissions.
Why it's wrong here
Trusted Advisor provides checks but is not as comprehensive for per-bucket compliance; more of a best practice check.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse AWS Trusted Advisor's 'S3 Bucket Permissions' check (which only flags buckets with open ACLs or bucket policies that allow 'Everyone' access) with a comprehensive detection of all public read access, but it does not catch all bucket policy configurations that grant public read access (e.g., via a principal like 'CanonicalUser' or a specific AWS account).
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
AWS Config's s3-bucket-public-read-prohibited managed rule evaluates S3 bucket policies and ACLs to ensure no public read access is granted. It triggers a non-compliant status if the bucket policy allows 's3:GetObject' for 'Principal': '*' or 'Principal': { 'AWS': '*' }. IAM Access Analyzer uses automated reasoning to analyze policies and generates findings for any bucket policy that grants access to an external principal, including public access. Both services provide continuous monitoring and can trigger remediation workflows via AWS Config rules or EventBridge.
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.
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: Use IAM Access Analyzer to review bucket policies for public access. — IAM Access Analyzer reviews resource policies to identify resources shared with an external entity. For S3 buckets, it can analyze bucket policies and detect if they grant public read access (i.e., access to 'Principal': '*'). This directly identifies non-compliant buckets against the security baseline that prohibits public read access.
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
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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