AWS SCS-C03
The AWS Certified Security - Specialty (SCS-C03) validates deep expertise in securing AWS workloads — from IAM and encryption to detection, logging, and incident response. The current SCS-C03 version replaced SCS-C02 in December 2025. It is one of AWS's hardest exams and a credential that often gates senior cloud-security roles, security-cleared AWS engagements, and partner-tier requirements for your employer. With a scaled score of 750 out of 1000 to pass and a $300 retake every time you fall short, getting it right the first attempt matters. This page breaks down exactly what the exam covers, how it's delivered, and how to get it done.
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No upfront fee — you settle only after your verified passing result. We advertise guaranteed results — 100% pass guaranteed or money back.
How the AWS Security - Specialty exam is built — at a glance
65
A mix of multiple-choice, multiple-response, and the newer ordering and matching question types introduced with SCS-C03. 50 are scored; 15 are unscored pretest items that do not affect your result.
170
About 2 hours 50 minutes of seat time — roughly 2.6 minutes per question. Scenario stems are long, so time management is a real factor on this exam.
750
Scored on a scaled 100–1000 range; you need at least 750. Scoring is compensatory — your overall scaled score decides the result, not per-domain minimums.
Expect dense, scenario-based questions that describe a real AWS architecture and ask for the most secure, least-privilege, or most operationally correct fix. Many items hinge on subtle differences between similar services — KMS vs CloudHSM, SCPs vs IAM policies, GuardDuty vs Inspector vs Macie. There is no on-screen calculator and no penalty for guessing, so answer every question.
AWS reports a single scaled score from 100 to 1000 with a passing bar of 750. Because scoring is compensatory, a weak domain can be offset by strength elsewhere — but the exam leans toward Identity & Access Management, Infrastructure Security, and Data Protection, so those areas carry the most weight. You get a pass/fail result at the test center, with the official score report following by email.
Six domains — bars show each domain's share of your scored content (SCS-C03)
Designing detection and monitoring with GuardDuty, Security Hub, CloudTrail, and AWS Config — surfacing threats, anomalies, and misconfigurations across accounts.
Building incident-response playbooks, isolating and remediating compromised resources, rotating exposed credentials, and running root-cause analysis after an event.
VPC design, security groups and NACLs, WAF and Shield, network segmentation, and edge protections for compute and network resources.
The largest domain: IAM policies and roles, permission boundaries, resource policies, SCPs, IAM Identity Center, federation, and cross-account access patterns.
Encryption at rest and in transit, KMS key policies, grants, and rotation, CloudHSM, ACM and certificates, Secrets Manager, and Macie for sensitive data.
AWS Organizations, multi-account strategy, central security tooling, the shared responsibility model, cost-of-control trade-offs, and validating compliance across the environment.
Identity & Access Management (20%), Infrastructure Security (18%), and Data Protection (18%) together make up more than half the scored content, so a candidate strong in detection but shaky on IAM policy evaluation, VPC network controls, or KMS key policies can still fall short of 750. AWS service nuance — not memorization — is what separates a pass from a fail.
Two ways to sit the exam — and what to expect on test day
You sit the exam in a quiet, monitored room at a Pearson VUE center. Staff verify your government-issued ID, store your belongings, and watch the room. You're given an on-screen interface and an erasable noteboard. Arrive about 30 minutes early to complete check-in.
You take the exam from a private room at home through Pearson VUE's OnVUE platform, monitored by a live proctor. You'll run a system test, do a webcam room scan, and complete an ID check beforehand. No scratch paper is allowed online — you use a built-in digital whiteboard instead.
A valid, unexpired government photo ID whose name matches your AWS Certification (CertMetrics) account exactly. The proctor captures photos before the exam unlocks.
A clear desk, no second monitor, no phone or notes within reach, and a 360° webcam scan of the room. No one else may enter while the exam is in progress.
Stay in frame and on-camera the entire time. Breaks are not offered on OnVUE, so plan accordingly. Talking aloud, leaving the seat, or losing connection can pause or flag the session.
Built for security-focused cloud practitioners
No formal requirements — but the bar is high
Difficulty: Widely rated one of AWS's toughest exams. The questions reward deep, hands-on knowledge of KMS, IAM policy evaluation, VPC controls, and cross-account governance — not flashcard memorization. Most candidates invest 80–120 hours of focused prep, which is exactly the kind of pressure point our help is designed to remove.
The AWS Security - Specialty is a high-stakes, service-deep exam standing between you and a role, raise, or partner requirement. Exam Assist pairs you with a vetted AWS specialist and works on a pay-after-you-pass model — so the risk sits with us, not you. No upfront fee, guaranteed results: Exam Assist handles the sitting end to end, and you settle only after the verified result.
Tell us your target date, delivery method (Pearson VUE center or OnVUE online), and why you need the SCS-C03. Takes a couple of minutes over WhatsApp, Telegram, or Discord.
We review your timeline and situation and tell you plainly whether it's realistic — before any money is discussed. If it isn't a fit, we say so.
Exam Assist handles the sitting end to end. You're matched with an AWS specialist who maps the work around the six domains, the scenario-heavy question style, and the OnVUE environment — discreetly and confidentially.
You only pay once your passing result is confirmed on your official AWS report. No verified result, nothing owed.
See the full pay-after-you-pass AWS service, pricing model, and how matching works.
Straight answers about the AWS Security - Specialty exam
Service, guides, and sibling AWS exams
Pair with a vetted AWS specialist on a results-first arrangement. No upfront fee — settle only after a verified passing result.
Explore the service GuideWhere the Security - Specialty fits among the Foundational, Associate, Professional, and Specialty tracks — and how to sequence them.
Read the guide SAA-C03AWS's flagship Associate exam — broad architecture and security fundamentals that pair naturally with the Security specialism.
View exam SOA-C03The operations-focused Associate cert (formerly SysOps Administrator) covering monitoring, logging, and incident response — heavy overlap with this exam's daily-ops domains.
View exam ANS-C01The other infrastructure-deep Specialty exam — VPC, hybrid connectivity, and network controls that reinforce the Infrastructure Security domain.
View exam Get StartedTell us your exam, date, and target — get an honest feasibility answer with no upfront fee and pay only after a verified pass.
Start nowGet expert AWS Security - Specialty help with no upfront fee — you settle only after your verified passing result. Honest feasibility answer first, results-first arrangement always.