The correct answer is to create a trust store in AWS Certificate Manager Private CA and associate it with the Application Load Balancer. This configuration is required because mutual TLS (mTLS) authentication demands that the ALB validate client certificates against a set of trusted Certificate Authority (CA) certificates, which are stored in a trust store within ACM Private CA. By associating this trust store with the ALB’s listener rules, the load balancer performs a two-way TLS handshake, verifying both the server certificate and the client’s presented certificate. On the AWS Certified Developer Associate DVA-C02 exam, this topic tests your understanding of how to enforce client identity at the network edge, often appearing as a distractor where candidates mistakenly think client certificates are validated directly on the EC2 instances or via a standard ACM certificate. A common trap is confusing server-side TLS certificates with the trust store needed for client-side verification. Memory tip: think “Trust store = Trusted CA list for clients” — the ALB trusts the CA, not the individual client cert.
DVA-C02 Security Practice Question
This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security. 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 developer is deploying an application on EC2 instances behind an Application Load Balancer. The application must support mutual TLS (mTLS) authentication between clients and the load balancer. Which configuration is required?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create a trust store in AWS Certificate Manager Private CA and associate it with the ALB.
Option C is correct because mutual TLS (mTLS) on an Application Load Balancer requires a trust store that contains the trusted Certificate Authority (CA) certificates used to validate client certificates. This trust store must be created in AWS Certificate Manager Private CA and then associated with the ALB's listener rules. The ALB then performs client certificate verification during the TLS handshake, ensuring both the server and client present valid certificates.
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.
✗
Use a Network Load Balancer (NLB) with TLS listeners.
Why it's wrong here
NLB does not support mTLS.
✗
Configure listener rules on the ALB to require client certificates.
Why it's wrong here
Listener rules do not include mTLS configuration.
✓
Create a trust store in AWS Certificate Manager Private CA and associate it with the ALB.
Why this is correct
Trust store enables mTLS on ALB.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Use Amazon CloudFront with a custom origin and require client certificates.
Why it's wrong here
CloudFront can require client certificates but not with ALB as origin in the same way.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse 'requiring client certificates' with simply configuring a listener rule, not realizing that mTLS on ALB specifically requires a trust store in ACM Private CA to perform certificate validation.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
When mTLS is enabled on an ALB, the load balancer presents its server certificate during the TLS handshake and then requests a client certificate. The ALB uses the trust store (a list of CA certificates stored in ACM Private CA) to verify the client certificate's chain of trust. If the client certificate is signed by a CA in the trust store, the ALB terminates the TLS connection and forwards the client certificate details (e.g., in the X-Forwarded-Client-Cert header) to the backend EC2 instances. This is critical for zero-trust architectures where both parties must authenticate before any application data is exchanged.
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 — This question tests Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create a trust store in AWS Certificate Manager Private CA and associate it with the ALB. — Option C is correct because mutual TLS (mTLS) on an Application Load Balancer requires a trust store that contains the trusted Certificate Authority (CA) certificates used to validate client certificates. This trust store must be created in AWS Certificate Manager Private CA and then associated with the ALB's listener rules. The ALB then performs client certificate verification during the TLS handshake, ensuring both the server and client present valid certificates.
What should I do if I get this DVA-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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Question Discussion
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