- A
GuardDuty -> AWS Config -> Lambda -> modify security group
Why wrong: AWS Config is not designed to react to GuardDuty findings.
- B
GuardDuty -> CloudWatch Alarm -> Lambda -> modify security group
Why wrong: CloudWatch Alarm cannot directly consume GuardDuty findings.
- C
GuardDuty -> EventBridge -> Lambda -> modify security group
EventBridge can receive GuardDuty findings and trigger Lambda.
- D
GuardDuty -> AWS Shield -> modify security group
Why wrong: Shield is for DDoS protection, not instance isolation.
- E
GuardDuty -> AWS Systems Manager -> modify security group
Why wrong: Systems Manager is not event-driven for GuardDuty.
Question 632 of 1,748
Automatically Isolate EC2 Using GuardDuty Findings
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 uses Amazon GuardDuty for threat detection. The security team wants to automatically isolate an EC2 instance that is communicating with a known malicious IP address. Which combination of services should be used?
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
✓
GuardDuty -> EventBridge -> Lambda -> modify security group
Option C is correct because Amazon GuardDuty generates findings that can be sent to Amazon EventBridge as events. EventBridge can then trigger an AWS Lambda function that modifies the security group associated with the EC2 instance to deny traffic to/from the malicious IP address. This architecture provides a serverless, event-driven response mechanism without polling or additional services.
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.
- ✗
GuardDuty -> AWS Config -> Lambda -> modify security group
Why it's wrong here
AWS Config is not designed to react to GuardDuty findings.
- ✗
GuardDuty -> CloudWatch Alarm -> Lambda -> modify security group
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch Alarm cannot directly consume GuardDuty findings.
- ✓
GuardDuty -> EventBridge -> Lambda -> modify security group
Why this is correct
EventBridge can receive GuardDuty findings and trigger Lambda.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
GuardDuty -> AWS Shield -> modify security group
Why it's wrong here
Shield is for DDoS protection, not instance isolation.
- ✗
GuardDuty -> AWS Systems Manager -> modify security group
Why it's wrong here
Systems Manager is not event-driven for GuardDuty.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse CloudWatch Alarms with EventBridge, not realizing that GuardDuty findings are event-driven and require a rule-based event bus (EventBridge) rather than a metric-based alarm (CloudWatch Alarm) to trigger remediation.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
GuardDuty findings are published as events to the default event bus in EventBridge with a detail-type of 'GuardDuty Finding'. EventBridge rules can filter on specific finding types (e.g., 'UnauthorizedAccess:EC2/MaliciousIPCaller.Custom') and target a Lambda function. The Lambda function must have IAM permissions to describe the EC2 instance and modify its security group via the EC2 API, typically adding a deny rule for the malicious IP address. This pattern is often used in automated incident response playbooks.
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.
Quick reference
Cloud Service Model Comparison
| Model | You Manage | Provider Manages | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| IaaS | OS, runtime, apps, data | Hardware, hypervisor, networking | EC2, Azure VMs, GCP Compute Engine |
| PaaS | Apps and data | OS, runtime, middleware, hardware | Elastic Beanstalk, Azure App Service |
| SaaS | Data and settings only | Everything else | Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Workday |
| FaaS / Serverless | Function code only | Infra, scaling, runtime | Lambda, Azure Functions, Cloud Run |
| CaaS | Containers and apps | Kubernetes, OS, hardware | EKS, AKS, GKE |
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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Security Logging and Monitoring — study guide chapter
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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: GuardDuty -> EventBridge -> Lambda -> modify security group — Option C is correct because Amazon GuardDuty generates findings that can be sent to Amazon EventBridge as events. EventBridge can then trigger an AWS Lambda function that modifies the security group associated with the EC2 instance to deny traffic to/from the malicious IP address. This architecture provides a serverless, event-driven response mechanism without polling or additional services.
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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