The answer is to enable Amazon GuardDuty in each account. This is correct because GuardDuty is a managed threat detection service that natively ingests and analyzes AWS CloudTrail management and data events—along with VPC Flow Logs and DNS logs—to automatically identify suspicious API calls, such as anomalous IAM activity or credential exfiltration, without requiring you to manually query logs in a central S3 bucket. On the AWS Certified Security Specialty SCS-C02 exam, this question tests your understanding of automated threat detection at scale versus manual log analysis; a common trap is assuming you need to build a custom Athena or Lambda solution when GuardDuty already handles the heavy lifting. Remember the key distinction: GuardDuty detects threats from the logs, while CloudTrail simply records them. Memory tip: “GuardDuty guards the duty of detection—CloudTrail just trails the action.”
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 needs to detect suspicious API calls across multiple AWS accounts. The engineer has enabled AWS CloudTrail in each account and is sending logs to a central S3 bucket. Which additional step should the engineer take to analyze the logs for potential threats?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Enable Amazon GuardDuty in each account.
Amazon GuardDuty is a threat detection service that continuously monitors for malicious activity and unauthorized behavior, including suspicious API calls, by analyzing CloudTrail management and data events, VPC Flow Logs, and DNS logs. By enabling GuardDuty in each account, the security engineer can automatically detect potential threats across all accounts without manual log analysis. This directly addresses the need to analyze CloudTrail logs for suspicious API calls at scale.
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 Config rules to monitor CloudTrail configuration.
Why it's wrong here
AWS Config monitors configuration, not API activity for threats.
✗
Enable AWS Trusted Advisor in the management account.
Why it's wrong here
Trusted Advisor provides optimization recommendations, not threat detection.
✓
Enable Amazon GuardDuty in each account.
Why this is correct
GuardDuty analyzes CloudTrail logs for suspicious API activity.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Enable VPC Flow Logs in each account.
Why it's wrong here
VPC Flow Logs capture network traffic, not API calls.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may confuse VPC Flow Logs (network traffic) with CloudTrail logs (API activity), or think that Config rules or Trusted Advisor can detect suspicious API calls, when in fact GuardDuty is the dedicated threat detection service for this purpose.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
GuardDuty uses machine learning, anomaly detection, and integrated threat intelligence (e.g., from CrowdStrike, Proofpoint) to analyze CloudTrail events in near real-time. It can detect patterns like unusual API calls from a compromised IAM role or a spike in failed authentication attempts, which would be missed by manual log inspection. In a multi-account setup, GuardDuty can be centrally managed via the management account using AWS Organizations, allowing aggregated findings across all accounts.
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.
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: Enable Amazon GuardDuty in each account. — Amazon GuardDuty is a threat detection service that continuously monitors for malicious activity and unauthorized behavior, including suspicious API calls, by analyzing CloudTrail management and data events, VPC Flow Logs, and DNS logs. By enabling GuardDuty in each account, the security engineer can automatically detect potential threats across all accounts without manual log analysis. This directly addresses the need to analyze CloudTrail logs for suspicious API calls at scale.
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.
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.