200-901 Application Deployment and Security Practice Question
This 200-901 practice question tests your understanding of application deployment and security. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 developer is building a RESTful API with Python Flask. Which TWO are recommended security best practices for exposing the API over HTTPS?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Validate and sanitize all user input.
Option B is correct because validating and sanitizing all user input is a fundamental security practice that prevents injection attacks (e.g., SQL injection, cross-site scripting) against the Flask API. Even over HTTPS, encrypted transport does not protect against malicious payloads; input validation must be applied server-side, often using libraries like marshmallow or Flask-WTF to enforce data types and strip dangerous characters.
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.
✗
Use HTTP Basic Authentication for simplicity.
Why it's wrong here
Basic Auth sends credentials in base64; more secure alternatives like OAuth should be used.
✓
Validate and sanitize all user input.
Why this is correct
This prevents injection attacks like SQLi and XSS.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Enable CORS for all origins.
Why it's wrong here
This allows any website to access the API, leading to CSRF attacks.
✗
Store passwords in plaintext in the database.
Why it's wrong here
Passwords must be hashed and salted.
✓
Implement rate limiting to prevent abuse.
Why this is correct
Rate limiting mitigates denial-of-service and brute force attacks.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Cisco often tests the misconception that HTTPS alone makes an API secure, but the trap here is that encryption only protects data in transit, not the application logic—so candidates must remember that input validation and rate limiting are still required server-side defenses.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Input validation in Flask can be enforced at the route level using decorators or request schema libraries; for example, using marshmallow schemas with validate() raises a 422 error if input fails type or range checks. Under the hood, sanitization removes or escapes characters like '<', '>', or SQL meta-characters, which is critical because even with parameterized queries, unsanitized input in JSON fields can lead to NoSQL injection or log injection. A real-world scenario: a Flask API accepting JSON payloads with a 'username' field that is not sanitized could allow an attacker to inject a malicious script that executes when an admin views logs via a web dashboard.
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 practitioner preparing for the 200-901 exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
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.
Application Deployment and Security — This question tests Application Deployment and Security — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Validate and sanitize all user input. — Option B is correct because validating and sanitizing all user input is a fundamental security practice that prevents injection attacks (e.g., SQL injection, cross-site scripting) against the Flask API. Even over HTTPS, encrypted transport does not protect against malicious payloads; input validation must be applied server-side, often using libraries like marshmallow or Flask-WTF to enforce data types and strip dangerous characters.
What should I do if I get this 200-901 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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