- A
AWS Service Catalog
Service Catalog can enforce launch of only approved AMIs.
- B
IAM policies
Why wrong: IAM cannot restrict based on AMI ID directly.
- C
AWS Config
Why wrong: Config is detective, not preventive.
- D
AWS Image Builder
Why wrong: Image Builder creates AMIs, does not enforce usage.
Question 1,684 of 1,748
SCS-C02 Infrastructure Security Practice Question
This SCS-C02 practice question tests your understanding of infrastructure security. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 ensure that an EC2 instance can only be launched using an approved Amazon Machine Image (AMI) from a specific AWS account. Which AWS service should be used to enforce this requirement?
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 Service Catalog
AWS Service Catalog allows you to create and manage a portfolio of approved products, such as EC2 instances launched from specific AMIs. By defining a product that uses an approved AMI from a particular AWS account and enforcing launch constraints, you can ensure that only that AMI is used. IAM policies alone cannot restrict the AMI ID at launch time because they lack the granularity to filter by source account or AMI ID in the ec2:RunInstances action.
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 Service Catalog
Why this is correct
Service Catalog can enforce launch of only approved AMIs.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
IAM policies
Why it's wrong here
IAM cannot restrict based on AMI ID directly.
- ✗
AWS Config
Why it's wrong here
Config is detective, not preventive.
- ✗
AWS Image Builder
Why it's wrong here
Image Builder creates AMIs, does not enforce usage.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often choose IAM policies (Option B) thinking they can block AMIs by account, but IAM lacks the ability to condition on the source account of an AMI, making Service Catalog the only service that can enforce this with a combination of portfolios and launch constraints.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
AWS Service Catalog enforces governance by using launch constraints that reference an IAM role with a policy that grants ec2:RunInstances permission only for a specific AMI ID. This role is assumed when a user launches a product, effectively overriding the user's own permissions for that action. In a multi-account scenario, you can share the AMI from the source account via RAM (Resource Access Manager) and then reference that shared AMI in the Service Catalog product, ensuring only approved AMIs from that account are used.
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 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.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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Infrastructure Security — study guide chapter
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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: AWS Service Catalog — AWS Service Catalog allows you to create and manage a portfolio of approved products, such as EC2 instances launched from specific AMIs. By defining a product that uses an approved AMI from a particular AWS account and enforcing launch constraints, you can ensure that only that AMI is used. IAM policies alone cannot restrict the AMI ID at launch time because they lack the granularity to filter by source account or AMI ID in the ec2:RunInstances action.
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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