VA-003 Create Vault policies Practice Question
A Vault policy must allow a service to read secrets from "secret/data/app" and also be able to renew its own token. Which two policy statements are necessary and sufficient for this requirement? (Select two.)
⚠ Common exam trap
HashiCorp Vault often tests the distinction between 'auth/token/renew-self' and 'auth/token/renew', where candidates mistakenly choose the broader 'renew' path instead of the self-service endpoint, overlooking the requirement for the service to renew only its own token.
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
✓
path "secret/data/app" { capabilities = ["read"] }
The policy must grant read access to the specific path 'secret/data/app' for the service to retrieve secrets. Option B is correct because renewing a token requires the 'update' capability on the 'auth/token/renew-self' endpoint, which allows the service to extend its own token's TTL without needing broader token management privileges.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
path "secret/data/app" { capabilities = ["read"] }
Why this is correct
This provides read access to the specific secret path.
- ✓
path "auth/token/renew-self" { capabilities = ["update"] }
Why this is correct
This allows renewing its own token.
- ✗
path "auth/token/renew" { capabilities = ["update"] }
Why it's wrong here
This would allow renewing any token, which is too broad.
- ✗
path "secret/data/app/*" { capabilities = ["read"] }
Why it's wrong here
This would also allow reading subkeys, which is not necessary and may be too permissive.
- ✗
path "sys/auth" { capabilities = ["read"] }
Why it's wrong here
This is not required for reading the secret or renewing the token.
Go deeper
Related to this question
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every VA-003 question from scratch — 498 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This VA-003 practice question is part of Courseiva's free HashiCorp 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 VA-003 exam.