- A
AWS Config
Config has a managed rule to check if S3 buckets have encryption enabled.
- B
Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights
Why wrong: CloudWatch Logs Insights is a query tool, not a detection service.
- C
Amazon VPC Flow Logs
Why wrong: VPC Flow Logs do not capture S3 bucket configuration.
- D
AWS Security Hub
Security Hub aggregates compliance findings from Config and can alert on unencrypted buckets.
- E
AWS CloudTrail with Amazon CloudWatch Events
CloudTrail logs encryption-related API calls; CloudWatch Events can alert on missing encryption.
Question 328 of 1,748
SCS-C02 Security Logging and Monitoring Practice Question
This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security logging and monitoring. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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 S3 buckets are encrypted at rest. Which THREE services can be used to detect and alert on unencrypted buckets?
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
✓
AWS Config
AWS Config can evaluate S3 bucket configurations against managed rules like 's3-bucket-server-side-encryption-enabled' to detect unencrypted buckets. When a bucket violates the rule, AWS Config can trigger an Amazon SNS notification or invoke a Lambda function for remediation, enabling real-time alerting.
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.
- ✓
AWS Config
Why this is correct
Config has a managed rule to check if S3 buckets have encryption enabled.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch Logs Insights is a query tool, not a detection service.
- ✗
Amazon VPC Flow Logs
Why it's wrong here
VPC Flow Logs do not capture S3 bucket configuration.
- ✓
AWS Security Hub
Why this is correct
Security Hub aggregates compliance findings from Config and can alert on unencrypted buckets.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✓
AWS CloudTrail with Amazon CloudWatch Events
Why this is correct
CloudTrail logs encryption-related API calls; CloudWatch Events can alert on missing encryption.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may think Amazon CloudWatch Logs Insights or VPC Flow Logs can be used for configuration auditing, but they are designed for log analysis and network monitoring, not for detecting resource configuration states like encryption settings.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
AWS Config continuously records S3 bucket configurations as configuration items and evaluates them against rules. The managed rule 's3-bucket-server-side-encryption-enabled' checks the 'ServerSideEncryptionConfiguration' property of the bucket; if missing or set to 'null', the bucket is noncompliant. AWS Security Hub aggregates findings from AWS Config and other services, providing a centralized view of security issues, including unencrypted S3 buckets, and can send alerts via Amazon EventBridge. AWS CloudTrail logs S3 API calls (e.g., PutBucketEncryption), and when combined with Amazon CloudWatch Events (now part of Amazon EventBridge), you can create a rule that triggers an alert if a bucket is created or modified without encryption, but this is reactive to API activity, not a continuous compliance check.
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?
Security Logging and Monitoring — This question tests Security Logging and Monitoring — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: AWS Config — AWS Config can evaluate S3 bucket configurations against managed rules like 's3-bucket-server-side-encryption-enabled' to detect unencrypted buckets. When a bucket violates the rule, AWS Config can trigger an Amazon SNS notification or invoke a Lambda function for remediation, enabling real-time alerting.
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
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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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