Quick Answer
The answer is to validate the issuer (iss) and audience (aud) or client ID (azp) claims in the Cognito JWT. These two token validations are critical because the issuer claim confirms the token was generated by your specific Cognito user pool, while the audience claim ensures the token was intended for your API Gateway application, preventing a token from a different user pool or client from being used to access your API. On the AWS Certified Developer Associate DVA-C02 exam, this concept tests your understanding of securing API Gateway endpoints with Cognito authorizers, often appearing in scenario-based questions where a developer must choose the correct validation logic to prevent unauthorized access. A common trap is forgetting to validate the audience claim, thinking the issuer check alone is sufficient. Remember the mnemonic: "Issuer for the source, Audience for the course" — the token must come from your pool and be meant for your API.
This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 uses API Gateway with Cognito. Which two token validations are important when authorizing API access?
Validate issuer and audience/client ID
Correct for the stated requirement.
Accept any JWT signed with none algorithm
Why wrong: This does not meet the stated requirement as directly as the correct option.
Validate scopes or group claims required by the route
Correct for the stated requirement.
Trust only the username string sent in a header
Why wrong: This does not meet the stated requirement as directly as the correct option.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Validate issuer and audience/client ID
Option A is correct because API Gateway with Cognito requires validating the JWT's issuer (iss) claim to ensure the token was issued by the expected Cognito user pool, and validating the audience (aud) or client ID (azp) claim to confirm the token was intended for the specific API Gateway application. Without these checks, an attacker could use a token from a different user pool or client to access the API.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Validate issuer and audience/client ID
Why this is correct
Correct for the stated requirement.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Accept any JWT signed with none algorithm
Why it's wrong here
This does not meet the stated requirement as directly as the correct option.
Validate scopes or group claims required by the route
Why this is correct
Correct for the stated requirement.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Trust only the username string sent in a header
Why it's wrong here
This does not meet the stated requirement as directly as the correct option.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates often focus only on signature verification (which is critical) but overlook the equally important validation of issuer and audience claims, which prevents token reuse across different user pools or clients.
Detailed technical explanation
Under the hood, Cognito issues JWTs with specific claims: 'iss' set to the user pool endpoint (e.g., https://cognito-idp.{region}.amazonaws.com/{userPoolId}), and 'aud' or 'client_id' matching the app client ID. API Gateway Lambda authorizers or Cognito authorizers automatically verify these claims, but custom authorizers must manually decode and validate the JWT using a library like jose or PyJWT, checking the signature against the user pool's JSON Web Key Set (JWKS). In a real-world scenario, failing to validate the issuer could allow a token from a rogue user pool to access your API, while missing audience validation could let a token meant for a different app client (e.g., a mobile app) be used against your API Gateway endpoint.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
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FAQ
Security — This question tests Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Validate issuer and audience/client ID — Option A is correct because API Gateway with Cognito requires validating the JWT's issuer (iss) claim to ensure the token was issued by the expected Cognito user pool, and validating the audience (aud) or client ID (azp) claim to confirm the token was intended for the specific API Gateway application. Without these checks, an attacker could use a token from a different user pool or client to access the API.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This DVA-C02 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Amazon Web Services certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the DVA-C02 exam.
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