CPENT Cloud And Hybrid Infrastructure Security Practice Question
An AWS administrator wants to ensure that all data stored in newly created Amazon S3 buckets is automatically encrypted at rest using server-side encryption with customer-managed keys (SSE-KMS). What is the most scalable way to enforce this?
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
✓
Configure S3 bucket default encryption with SSE-KMS on all buckets or enforce it via AWS Organizations Service Control Policies (SCPs).
Enforcing SSE-KMS via S3 bucket default encryption or AWS Organizations SCPs ensures compliance across accounts and new buckets.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Manually run an AWS CLI script daily to apply KMS encryption to every individual object.
Why it's wrong here
Manual daily scripting is inefficient and not scalable.
- ✗
Enable AWS Shield Standard on each individual S3 object.
Why it's wrong here
AWS Shield provides DDoS protection, not encryption.
- ✗
Attach an Amazon CloudWatch alarm to detect unencrypted PUT requests.
Why it's wrong here
CloudWatch alarms detect events but do not enforce encryption.
- ✓
Configure S3 bucket default encryption with SSE-KMS on all buckets or enforce it via AWS Organizations Service Control Policies (SCPs).
Why this is correct
Default encryption and SCPs ensure automatic encryption enforcement.
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 |
About these practice questions
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed August 2026 · checked against the official EC-Council exam blueprint
This CPENT practice question is part of Courseiva's free EC-Council 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 CPENT exam.