SAP-C02 Design for New Solutions Practice Question
A startup is building a serverless application using AWS Lambda. They need to securely store and retrieve database credentials without hardcoding them in the function code. Which AWS service should they use?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many candidates confuse AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store with Secrets Manager because both can store secrets, but Parameter Store lacks native automatic rotation and is not designed as a full lifecycle secrets management service, making Secrets Manager the correct answer for database credential rotation requirements.
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
✓
AWS Secrets Manager
AWS Secrets Manager is the correct choice because it is purpose-built for securely storing, rotating, and retrieving database credentials and other secrets throughout their lifecycle. It integrates natively with Lambda via the AWS SDK, allowing retrieval of credentials at runtime without hardcoding, and supports automatic rotation of secrets for supported databases like Amazon RDS.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Amazon DynamoDB
Why it's wrong here
DynamoDB is a NoSQL database, not designed for secure secret storage.
- ✓
AWS Secrets Manager
Why this is correct
Secrets Manager is the best choice for managing secrets with automatic rotation.
- ✗
AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM)
Why it's wrong here
IAM manages access permissions, not secret storage.
- ✗
AWS Systems Manager Parameter Store
Why it's wrong here
Parameter Store can store secrets but lacks automatic rotation capabilities.
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 by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.