SAP-C02 Design for New Solutions Practice Question
A financial services firm is designing a new trade-processing platform on AWS. The platform uses AWS Lambda functions that must access an Amazon RDS for MySQL database in a private subnet. Security policy forbids storing database credentials in environment variables or code. The firm also requires that credentials be automatically rotated every 30 days, and that the rotation be auditable. Which solution meets these requirements with the LEAST operational overhead?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is choosing a solution that stores secrets securely but lacks native rotation, such as Parameter Store SecureString, or granting overly broad permissions when using Secrets Manager.
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 Secrets Manager. Grant the Lambda execution role secretsmanager:GetSecretValue on the specific secret ARN, and configure automatic rotation with a 30-day schedule using the provided RDS MySQL rotation Lambda function.
AWS Secrets Manager integrates directly with Amazon RDS to rotate database credentials automatically using a managed rotation Lambda function. Configuring a 30-day rotation schedule satisfies the policy, and granting the Lambda execution role only secretsmanager:GetSecretValue on the specific secret ARN follows least privilege. Rotation events are logged in AWS CloudTrail, providing the required auditability.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Store the database credentials in AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store as a SecureString parameter. Create a custom Lambda function that rotates the password every 30 days and updates the parameter.
Why it's wrong here
Parameter Store SecureString parameters are encrypted, but Parameter Store has no built-in rotation capability for database credentials. Building and maintaining a custom rotation function adds operational overhead and is more error-prone than using Secrets Manager's managed rotation for RDS.
- ✓
Store the database credentials in AWS Secrets Manager. Grant the Lambda execution role secretsmanager:GetSecretValue on the specific secret ARN, and configure automatic rotation with a 30-day schedule using the provided RDS MySQL rotation Lambda function.
Why this is correct
Secrets Manager is purpose-built for storing and rotating database credentials. Automatic rotation with the provided RDS MySQL rotation function updates both the secret and the database password every 30 days. Scoping the execution role to GetSecretValue on the specific secret ARN follows least privilege and keeps the solution auditable via AWS CloudTrail.
- ✗
Store the database credentials in an encrypted Amazon S3 object. Have the Lambda function retrieve and decrypt the object at each invocation using an AWS KMS key, and use an S3 Lifecycle rule to delete and recreate the object every 30 days.
Why it's wrong here
S3 is not designed for credential storage and offers no native credential rotation. Deleting and recreating the object would not update the database password, so the credentials would become invalid. This approach also requires custom code and provides no audit trail tied to credential rotation.
- ✗
Store the database credentials in AWS Secrets Manager. Attach the AWS managed policy SecretsManagerReadWrite to the Lambda execution role, and enable automatic rotation with a 30-day schedule using the provided RDS MySQL rotation Lambda function.
Why it's wrong here
Secrets Manager with automatic rotation is the right service, but SecretsManagerReadWrite is far too permissive and would grant the function broad permissions beyond reading its own secret. The execution role should allow only secretsmanager:GetSecretValue on the specific secret ARN to follow least privilege.
Visual reference
Quick reference
Cloud Service Model Comparison
| Model | You Manage | Provider Manages | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| IaaS | OS, runtime, apps, data | Hardware, hypervisor, networking | EC2, Azure VMs, GCP Compute Engine |
| PaaS | Apps and data | OS, runtime, middleware, hardware | Elastic Beanstalk, Azure App Service |
| SaaS | Data and settings only | Everything else | Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Workday |
| FaaS / Serverless | Function code only | Infra, scaling, runtime | Lambda, Azure Functions, Cloud Run |
| CaaS | Containers and apps | Kubernetes, OS, hardware | EKS, AKS, GKE |
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Amazon Web Services exam blueprint
This SAP-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 SAP-C02 exam.