The correct action is to add a manual approval action in the CodePipeline pipeline before the production deployment stage. This creates a required review and approval gate that pauses the pipeline, preventing any code from reaching production until an authorized user manually approves the change. On the AWS Certified SysOps Administrator Associate SOA-C02 exam, this scenario tests your understanding of pipeline security controls and the concept of approval gates as a compliance mechanism. A common trap is confusing manual approval with automated testing stages—remember that manual approval is a human-driven check, not a code validation step. For the exam, think of it as a "human firewall" that enforces separation of duties. A useful memory tip: "Approve before you deploy" ties the manual approval action directly to the production stage, ensuring no code bypasses review.
SOA-C02 Security and Compliance Practice Question
This SOA-C02 practice question tests your understanding of security and compliance. 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 company is using AWS CodePipeline to deploy a web application. The security team requires that all code changes be reviewed and approved before deployment to production. Which action should be taken to enforce this requirement?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Add a manual approval action in the CodePipeline pipeline before the production deployment stage.
Option A is correct because adding a manual approval action in the CodePipeline pipeline before the production deployment stage enforces a required review and approval gate. This action pauses the pipeline at that point, waiting for an authorized user to manually approve the change before it proceeds to the production stage, directly meeting the security team's requirement.
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.
✓
Add a manual approval action in the CodePipeline pipeline before the production deployment stage.
Why this is correct
This ensures that a designated approver must manually approve the deployment.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Create an IAM policy that denies the codecommit:PutFile action unless the user is in a specific group.
Why it's wrong here
This restricts code commits but does not enforce approval for deployment.
✗
Enable AWS CloudTrail and create a CloudWatch Events rule to notify the security team of any deployments.
Why it's wrong here
This provides notification but does not block deployments.
✗
Configure a CodeCommit repository to require pull requests for all changes.
Why it's wrong here
This enforces review before commit, but does not prevent direct deployments via CodePipeline.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse source-level controls (like pull request requirements or IAM policies) with pipeline-level approval gates, mistakenly thinking that preventing direct pushes or requiring pull requests alone satisfies the deployment approval requirement.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
A manual approval action in CodePipeline uses an SNS topic to send approval notifications, and the pipeline execution pauses until an IAM user or role with the codepipeline:Approval permission either approves or rejects the change. This is distinct from branch protection rules or IAM policies, as it operates at the pipeline stage level, ensuring that even if code is merged, it cannot reach production without explicit sign-off. In real-world scenarios, this is critical for compliance with standards like PCI DSS or SOC 2, where a separation of duties between development and deployment is required.
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.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Security and Compliance — This question tests Security and Compliance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Add a manual approval action in the CodePipeline pipeline before the production deployment stage. — Option A is correct because adding a manual approval action in the CodePipeline pipeline before the production deployment stage enforces a required review and approval gate. This action pauses the pipeline at that point, waiting for an authorized user to manually approve the change before it proceeds to the production stage, directly meeting the security team's requirement.
What should I do if I get this SOA-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.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
This SOA-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 SOA-C02 exam.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.