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 designing a serverless application using AWS Lambda, Amazon API Gateway, and Amazon DynamoDB. The application must authenticate users using a third-party OIDC identity provider and authorize each request. Which THREE steps should the developer take? (Choose THREE.)
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create an Amazon Cognito user pool with the OIDC identity provider configured.
Option A is correct because Amazon Cognito user pools can be configured to federate with third-party OIDC identity providers. This allows the user pool to act as an intermediary that handles the OIDC token exchange, issuing its own JWT tokens after successful authentication. This is the standard approach for integrating external OIDC providers with AWS serverless applications.
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 Amazon Cognito user pool with the OIDC identity provider configured.
Why this is correct
Cognito can federate with OIDC providers.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Generate an API key and distribute it to users for authentication.
Why it's wrong here
API keys are not for user authentication.
✗
Create an IAM authorizer in API Gateway to validate the JWT token.
Why it's wrong here
IAM authorizer uses IAM credentials, not OIDC.
✓
In the Lambda function, parse the JWT claims from the event context to make authorization decisions.
Why this is correct
The Lambda function receives the claims and can authorize based on them.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✓
Use a Cognito user pool authorizer in API Gateway to validate the token.
Why this is correct
API Gateway can use Cognito authorizer to validate tokens.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is confusing the role of API Gateway authorizers: candidates often pick IAM authorizer (Option C) thinking it can validate JWTs, but IAM authorizers require AWS SigV4 signing and are not designed for OIDC token validation, while the Cognito user pool authorizer is the correct choice for JWT-based federated authentication.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
When using a Cognito user pool authorizer in API Gateway, API Gateway automatically validates the JWT from the user pool (including signature, expiry, and issuer) before the request reaches the Lambda function. The Lambda function then receives the decoded claims in the event.requestContext.authorizer.claims object, allowing fine-grained authorization logic without needing to parse or verify the token manually. This offloads token validation overhead from Lambda and ensures consistent security policies at the API Gateway layer.
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 an Amazon Cognito user pool with the OIDC identity provider configured. — Option A is correct because Amazon Cognito user pools can be configured to federate with third-party OIDC identity providers. This allows the user pool to act as an intermediary that handles the OIDC token exchange, issuing its own JWT tokens after successful authentication. This is the standard approach for integrating external OIDC providers with AWS serverless applications.
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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