SAP-C02 Practice Question: Design Solutions for Organizational Complexity
A company uses AWS Organizations and wants to allow a development account to assume a role in the production account for deployment purposes. Which component is necessary for this cross-account access?
⚠ Common exam trap
A common mix-up: candidates confuse network connectivity (VPC peering) with IAM authorization, or assuming that an SCP alone can enable cross-account access when SCPs only act as a permission guardrail within an organization.
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
✓
An IAM role in the production account with a trust policy allowing the development account
Cross-account IAM access requires a role in the target (production) account with a trust policy that explicitly lists the source (development) account as a trusted principal. The development account then uses the STS AssumeRole API to obtain temporary credentials for that role. Without this trust policy, the role cannot be assumed from another account.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
A VPC peering connection between the accounts
Why it's wrong here
VPC peering provides private network routing between virtual networks; it carries no IAM authorisation, so no role can be assumed through it. Cross-account AssumeRole needs a trust policy naming the development account. Peering is correct when workloads must exchange traffic over private IP addresses.
- ✓
An IAM role in the production account with a trust policy allowing the development account
Why this is correct
The trust policy on the production role names the development account as principal, which is what permits the cross-account sts:AssumeRole call. Without that trust relationship, the development account's identity cannot obtain temporary credentials, so the deployment access fails.
- ✗
A service control policy (SCP) that permits AssumeRole
Why it's wrong here
SCPs set the maximum permissions for principals in member accounts; they do not grant a development principal the right to assume a production role. The trust policy on the production role, plus the caller's identity permission, is required. SCPs are correct when restricting what accounts may do.
- ✗
An AWS Config rule to validate the role
Why it's wrong here
AWS Config evaluates and records resource configuration compliance; it neither grants nor enables an AssumeRole call. The production role's trust policy must name the development account, and the caller needs sts:AssumeRole permission. Config is correct for detecting drift or enforcing configuration rules.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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