This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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 wants to securely store API keys for a third-party service and retrieve them at runtime in a Lambda function. Which AWS service should be used?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
AWS Secrets Manager
AWS Secrets Manager is the correct choice because it is purpose-built for securely storing, rotating, and retrieving secrets such as API keys, database credentials, and OAuth tokens at runtime. It integrates natively with AWS Lambda via the AWS SDK, allowing developers to fetch secrets with minimal latency and without hardcoding sensitive values in code. Secrets Manager also supports automatic rotation of secrets using built-in or custom Lambda functions, which is critical for maintaining security compliance.
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.
✓
AWS Secrets Manager
Why this is correct
Secrets Manager is purpose-built for secrets, with rotation and fine-grained access control.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
AWS CloudFormation
Why it's wrong here
CloudFormation is used to provision resources, not to store runtime secrets.
✗
Amazon DynamoDB with encryption at rest
Why it's wrong here
DynamoDB is not designed for secret management; access control is more complex.
✗
AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store
Why it's wrong here
Parameter Store can store secrets but does not have native rotation capabilities.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store (which can store secure strings) with AWS Secrets Manager, but the exam expects you to know that Secrets Manager is the only service that provides automatic rotation and is specifically designed for secrets management, not just parameter storage.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, AWS Secrets Manager uses envelope encryption with AWS KMS (Key Management Service) to encrypt secret values at rest, and the AWS SDK automatically decrypts them when retrieved via the GetSecretValue API. Secrets Manager also supports cross-account access and resource-based policies, enabling fine-grained control over which Lambda functions can access specific secrets. A real-world scenario where this matters is when a Lambda function needs to rotate an API key every 30 days; Secrets Manager can trigger a custom Lambda rotation function automatically, whereas Parameter Store would require a separate scheduled event and custom logic.
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 cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
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: AWS Secrets Manager — AWS Secrets Manager is the correct choice because it is purpose-built for securely storing, rotating, and retrieving secrets such as API keys, database credentials, and OAuth tokens at runtime. It integrates natively with AWS Lambda via the AWS SDK, allowing developers to fetch secrets with minimal latency and without hardcoding sensitive values in code. Secrets Manager also supports automatic rotation of secrets using built-in or custom Lambda functions, which is critical for maintaining security compliance.
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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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.
Question Discussion
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