This CKS practice question tests your understanding of cluster setup and hardening. 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.
You are creating a ServiceAccount that should not automatically mount its token to pods. Which field should be set in the ServiceAccount manifest?
automountServiceAccountToken: false
This field in the ServiceAccount spec disables automatic mounting of the service account token.
disableAutomount: true
Why wrong: No such field exists.
tokenMountDisabled: true
Why wrong: No such field exists.
mountToken: false
Why wrong: No such field exists.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
automountServiceAccountToken: false
Option A is correct because the `automountServiceAccountToken` field in a ServiceAccount manifest, when set to `false`, prevents pods using that ServiceAccount from automatically mounting the service account token as a volume. This is a security hardening measure to reduce the attack surface in case a pod is compromised, as the token could be used to authenticate to the Kubernetes API server.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
automountServiceAccountToken: false
Why this is correct
This field in the ServiceAccount spec disables automatic mounting of the service account token.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
disableAutomount: true
Why it's wrong here
No such field exists.
tokenMountDisabled: true
Why it's wrong here
No such field exists.
mountToken: false
Why it's wrong here
No such field exists.
Common exam traps
The trap here is that candidates may confuse the ServiceAccount-level field with the Pod-level field of the same name, or invent non-existent field names like `disableAutomount` or `tokenMountDisabled`, instead of recalling the exact API field `automountServiceAccountToken`.
Detailed technical explanation
Under the hood, when a ServiceAccount has `automountServiceAccountToken: false`, the Pod admission controller will not inject the projected service account token volume (typically mounted at `/var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount`) into pods that reference that ServiceAccount. This is distinct from setting the same field at the Pod spec level, which overrides the ServiceAccount setting. In a real-world scenario, you might disable automatic token mounting for workloads that do not need to interact with the Kubernetes API, such as batch jobs or sidecar containers, to follow the principle of least privilege.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A practitioner preparing for the CKS 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
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FAQ
Cluster Setup and Hardening — This question tests Cluster Setup and Hardening — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: automountServiceAccountToken: false — Option A is correct because the `automountServiceAccountToken` field in a ServiceAccount manifest, when set to `false`, prevents pods using that ServiceAccount from automatically mounting the service account token as a volume. This is a security hardening measure to reduce the attack surface in case a pod is compromised, as the token could be used to authenticate to the Kubernetes API server.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 2026
This CKS practice question is part of Courseiva's free CNCF 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 CKS exam.
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