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Question 1,054 of 1,616

Development with AWS Services →mediumMultiple SelectObjective-mapped

Secure Database Credentials in ECS Fargate

This DVA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of development with aws services. 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 is deploying an application on Amazon ECS using Fargate. The application needs to securely access an Amazon RDS database. The developer wants to avoid hardcoding database credentials in the application code. Which THREE actions should the developer take to meet these requirements? (Choose THREE.)

A
Hardcode the credentials in the application code and encrypt the code using AWS KMS.
Why wrong: Hardcoding is not a best practice even if encrypted; it's still exposed in code repositories.
B
Store the database credentials in AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store or AWS Secrets Manager.
Parameter Store or Secrets Manager can securely store secrets and be retrieved by the application.
C
Reference the secrets in the task definition as environment variables using the 'secrets' parameter.
ECS task definition supports a 'secrets' parameter that injects secrets as environment variables.
D
Grant the ECS task execution role permission to read the secrets from Parameter Store or Secrets Manager.
The task execution role allows ECS to retrieve secrets on behalf of the task.
E
Store the credentials in Amazon Elastic Container Registry (ECR) as a tag.
Why wrong: ECR is for container images, not secrets. Tags are not encrypted and not designed for secrets.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

Answer choices

Why each option matters

Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.

Correct answer & explanation

✓

Store the database credentials in AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store or AWS Secrets Manager.

Option B is correct because AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store and AWS Secrets Manager are AWS-native services designed to securely store and manage sensitive information like database credentials. By storing credentials in these services, the developer avoids hardcoding them in the application code, adhering to security best practices. The application can then retrieve the credentials at runtime using IAM roles and permissions.

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.

✗
Hardcode the credentials in the application code and encrypt the code using AWS KMS.
Why it's wrong here
Hardcoding is not a best practice even if encrypted; it's still exposed in code repositories.
✓
Store the database credentials in AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store or AWS Secrets Manager.
Why this is correct
Parameter Store or Secrets Manager can securely store secrets and be retrieved by the application.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✓
Reference the secrets in the task definition as environment variables using the 'secrets' parameter.
Why this is correct
ECS task definition supports a 'secrets' parameter that injects secrets as environment variables.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✓
Grant the ECS task execution role permission to read the secrets from Parameter Store or Secrets Manager.
Why this is correct
The task execution role allows ECS to retrieve secrets on behalf of the task.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Store the credentials in Amazon Elastic Container Registry (ECR) as a tag.
Why it's wrong here
ECR is for container images, not secrets. Tags are not encrypted and not designed for secrets.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates might think storing credentials in ECR tags or encrypting code with KMS is sufficient, but AWS explicitly requires using Parameter Store or Secrets Manager for secrets management in ECS tasks to avoid exposure in the container image or codebase.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

When using ECS Fargate with the 'secrets' parameter in the task definition, the ECS agent retrieves the secret from Parameter Store or Secrets Manager and injects it as an environment variable into the container at runtime, without the secret ever being written to the container image or task definition log. The ECS task execution role must have the 'ssm:GetParameters' or 'secretsmanager:GetSecretValue' permission, and the secret ARN is specified in the task definition, ensuring that only authorized tasks can access the secret.

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.

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FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this DVA-C02 question test?

Development with AWS Services — This question tests Development with AWS Services — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: Store the database credentials in AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store or AWS Secrets Manager. — Option B is correct because AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store and AWS Secrets Manager are AWS-native services designed to securely store and manage sensitive information like database credentials. By storing credentials in these services, the developer avoids hardcoding them in the application code, adhering to security best practices. The application can then retrieve the credentials at runtime using IAM roles and permissions.

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.