This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 troubleshooting an issue where an IAM role assumed by an EC2 instance does not have permission to call the DynamoDB PutItem API. The role has a policy that allows all DynamoDB actions on a specific table. Which of the following is the most likely cause?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The IAM role policy does not include the 'dynamodb:PutItem' action or the resource ARN is incorrect.
Option C is correct because the most likely cause is that the IAM role's policy either does not explicitly include the 'dynamodb:PutItem' action or the resource ARN is incorrectly specified. Even if the policy allows all DynamoDB actions (e.g., via 'Action': 'dynamodb:*'), a missing or mismatched resource ARN (such as not targeting the specific table ARN) will cause the API call to fail with an access denied error. The developer should verify that the policy statement includes the correct action and that the Resource element points to the exact DynamoDB table ARN.
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.
✗
The IAM role has not been attached to the EC2 instance profile.
Why it's wrong here
If the role is not attached, the instance cannot assume it, but the question states the role is assumed.
✗
The DynamoDB table is not in the same region as the EC2 instance.
Why it's wrong here
Cross-region access is allowed and does not cause permission issues.
✓
The IAM role policy does not include the 'dynamodb:PutItem' action or the resource ARN is incorrect.
Why this is correct
If the policy is missing the action or has wrong ARN, the API call will be denied.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
The EC2 instance does not have the necessary network connectivity to DynamoDB.
Why it's wrong here
Network issues would cause a timeout, not an authorization error.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often assume a policy with 'dynamodb:*' automatically grants all actions, but they overlook that the resource ARN must exactly match the table being accessed, or that the policy might be missing the specific action name if it's not a wildcard.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, when an EC2 instance assumes an IAM role, the AWS SDK obtains temporary security credentials from the instance metadata service (IMDS). These credentials are then used to sign API requests. The IAM policy evaluation checks both the Action and Resource elements; if the policy uses a condition key like 'dynamodb:LeadingKeys' or the resource ARN is malformed (e.g., missing the table name or region), the request is denied even if the action is allowed. A common real-world scenario is when a policy uses 'Resource': '*' instead of the specific table ARN, which can inadvertently grant broader access but still fail if the table ARN is required for fine-grained access control.
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: The IAM role policy does not include the 'dynamodb:PutItem' action or the resource ARN is incorrect. — Option C is correct because the most likely cause is that the IAM role's policy either does not explicitly include the 'dynamodb:PutItem' action or the resource ARN is incorrectly specified. Even if the policy allows all DynamoDB actions (e.g., via 'Action': 'dynamodb:*'), a missing or mismatched resource ARN (such as not targeting the specific table ARN) will cause the API call to fail with an access denied error. The developer should verify that the policy statement includes the correct action and that the Resource element points to the exact DynamoDB table ARN.
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.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
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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