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 does not handle IAM permissions.
- ✓
An IAM role in the production account with a trust policy allowing the development account
Why this is correct
Trust policies enable cross-account role assumption.
- ✗
A service control policy (SCP) that permits AssumeRole
Why it's wrong here
SCPs are deny lists, not grant access.
- ✗
An AWS Config rule to validate the role
Why it's wrong here
Config does not grant access.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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