Validate your expertise in securing AWS workloads. Covers threat detection, incident response, infrastructure security, identity and access management, data protection, and security governance.
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Every in-scope security service, detection pattern, IAM and data-protection decision the SCS-C03 exam actually tests — organised by the six exam domains with policy patterns and runbooks
The AWS Certified Security Specialty (SCS-C03) is AWS's dedicated security certification. It validates your expertise in securing AWS workloads, including identity management, infrastructure protection, data encryption, incident response, and compliance. It's one of the most valued specialty certifications in the market.
This exam targets security engineers, security architects, cloud security analysts, and anyone whose primary role involves securing AWS environments. AWS recommends the equivalent of three to five years of experience securing cloud solutions, plus a strong understanding of compliance frameworks and incident response.
The SCS-C03 exam has 65 questions (50 scored, 15 unscored) in multiple-choice and multiple-response format, and may include ordering and matching questions. You get 170 minutes, and the passing score is 750/1000 (approximately 75%). The exam costs $300 USD.
Recommended experience: The equivalent of three to five years of experience securing cloud solutions (as AWS recommends), plus familiarity with security frameworks, encryption, and identity management.
Absolutely. Cloud security roles are among the highest-paying in tech, and the SCS-C03 is widely recognized as proof of AWS security expertise. It's particularly valuable if you work in regulated industries (healthcare, finance, government) where security compliance is critical.
IAM (policies, roles, federation), KMS and CloudHSM (encryption), GuardDuty (threat detection), Security Hub, Config, CloudTrail, WAF, Shield, Macie, and AWS Organizations SCPs. Understanding how these services work together to build defense in depth is more important than memorizing individual features.
No. AWS sets no prerequisites, and the SCS-C03 exam guide recommends experience rather than another certification: the equivalent of three to five years securing cloud solutions. The exam assumes you understand core AWS networking, IAM, and infrastructure concepts, so the Solutions Architect Associate or CloudOps Engineer Associate is a useful foundation if you lack that experience.
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