- A
Create an IAM policy in each member account that denies ec2:RunInstances unless the instance type is in the approved list.
Why wrong: This requires managing policies in each account individually, increasing operational overhead and risk of inconsistency.
- B
Create an AWS Organizations Service Control Policy (SCP) that denies ec2:RunInstances if the instance type is not in the approved list.
SCPs are applied at the organization or OU level and are inherited by all accounts. They provide preventive controls with minimal overhead.
- C
Use AWS Config with the managed rule 'ec2-instance-type-check' and an automatic remediation action that terminates non-compliant instances.
Why wrong: This is a detective control that reacts after launch, potentially incurring cost and delay before termination. It is not preventive.
- D
Use Amazon EventBridge to detect RunInstances API calls and invoke a Lambda function that terminates unapproved instances.
Why wrong: This is also a reactive approach with custom code, and it may terminate instances after they have already launched, causing resource waste and potential security exposure.
SOA-C02 Security and Compliance Practice Question
This SOA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security and compliance. 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 manages multiple AWS accounts using AWS Organizations. The security team wants to restrict the use of Amazon EC2 instance types to only those that are approved for production workloads (e.g., m5.large, m5.xlarge). The policy should be applied to all member accounts in the organization, and it should prevent any non-approved instance type from being launched. The SysOps administrator should implement this with minimal operational overhead. Which solution 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
Create an AWS Organizations Service Control Policy (SCP) that denies ec2:RunInstances if the instance type is not in the approved list.
Option B is correct because AWS Organizations Service Control Policies (SCPs) can centrally enforce restrictions across all member accounts without requiring per-account configuration. By creating an SCP that denies ec2:RunInstances when the instance type is not in the approved list, the security team can prevent non-approved EC2 instance types from being launched with minimal operational overhead, as SCPs are applied at the organization, OU, or account level and do not require managing IAM policies in each account.
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.
- ✗
Create an IAM policy in each member account that denies ec2:RunInstances unless the instance type is in the approved list.
Why it's wrong here
This requires managing policies in each account individually, increasing operational overhead and risk of inconsistency.
- ✓
Create an AWS Organizations Service Control Policy (SCP) that denies ec2:RunInstances if the instance type is not in the approved list.
Why this is correct
SCPs are applied at the organization or OU level and are inherited by all accounts. They provide preventive controls with minimal overhead.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use AWS Config with the managed rule 'ec2-instance-type-check' and an automatic remediation action that terminates non-compliant instances.
Why it's wrong here
This is a detective control that reacts after launch, potentially incurring cost and delay before termination. It is not preventive.
- ✗
Use Amazon EventBridge to detect RunInstances API calls and invoke a Lambda function that terminates unapproved instances.
Why it's wrong here
This is also a reactive approach with custom code, and it may terminate instances after they have already launched, causing resource waste and potential security exposure.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse SCPs with IAM policies, thinking that SCPs grant permissions, but SCPs only act as a guardrail to restrict permissions, and they must be combined with appropriate IAM policies to allow actions; additionally, candidates may choose reactive solutions like AWS Config or EventBridge because they are familiar, but the question explicitly asks for a preventive control with minimal overhead.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
SCPs are policy documents that use AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) policy syntax and are attached to the root, OUs, or accounts in AWS Organizations. They do not grant permissions but define a maximum permission boundary that limits what IAM principals (users, roles) can do, even if an IAM policy allows the action. The SCP condition key 'ec2:InstanceType' can be used with a 'ForAnyValue:StringNotEquals' condition to deny any instance type not in the approved list, ensuring that the API call is blocked at the authorization stage before any resource is created.
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.
- →
Security and Compliance — study guide chapter
Learn the concepts, then practise the questions
- →
Security and Compliance practice questions
Targeted practice on this topic area only
- →
All SOA-C02 questions
1,546 questions across all exam domains
- →
AWS Certified SysOps Administrator Associate SOA-C02 study guide
Full concept coverage aligned to exam objectives
- →
SOA-C02 practice test guide
How to use practice tests most effectively before exam day
Related practice questions
Related SOA-C02 practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
Monitoring, Logging, and Remediation practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to Monitoring, Logging, and Remediation.
Reliability and Business Continuity practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to Reliability and Business Continuity.
Deployment, Provisioning, and Automation practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to Deployment, Provisioning, and Automation.
Security and Compliance practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to Security and Compliance.
Networking and Content Delivery practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to Networking and Content Delivery.
Cost and Performance Optimization practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to Cost and Performance Optimization.
SOA-C02 fundamentals practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to SOA-C02 fundamentals.
SOA-C02 scenario practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to SOA-C02 scenario.
SOA-C02 troubleshooting practice questions
Practise SOA-C02 questions linked to SOA-C02 troubleshooting.
Practice this exam
Start a free SOA-C02 practice session
Short sessions build daily habit. Longer sessions build exam-day stamina. Try a timed session to simulate real conditions.
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SOA-C02 question test?
Security and Compliance — This question tests Security and Compliance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create an AWS Organizations Service Control Policy (SCP) that denies ec2:RunInstances if the instance type is not in the approved list. — Option B is correct because AWS Organizations Service Control Policies (SCPs) can centrally enforce restrictions across all member accounts without requiring per-account configuration. By creating an SCP that denies ec2:RunInstances when the instance type is not in the approved list, the security team can prevent non-approved EC2 instance types from being launched with minimal operational overhead, as SCPs are applied at the organization, OU, or account level and do not require managing IAM policies in each account.
What should I do if I get this SOA-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 →
Keep practising
More SOA-C02 practice questions
- A company uses an Amazon DynamoDB table with on-demand capacity mode. The table handles a workload with a steady baselin…
- A company uses Amazon CloudWatch Logs to store application logs. The SysOps administrator needs to count the occurrences…
- A SysOps administrator needs to monitor the CPU utilization of an Amazon EC2 instance and send an alert when it exceeds…
- A SysOps administrator needs to monitor the CPU utilization of an Amazon EC2 instance fleet and send an alert when the a…
- A company's security policy requires that all Amazon S3 buckets must have server-side encryption enabled. The SysOps adm…
- A SysOps administrator uses AWS CloudFormation to deploy a stack that includes an Amazon EC2 instance. The administrator…
Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This SOA-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 SOA-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.