ISC Infrastructure And System Security Practice Question
A developer needs to store sensitive secrets for an application. Which approach is considered the industry standard for cloud environments?
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
✓
Using a cloud provider's Secret Management service.
Using a dedicated secret management service (e.g., AWS Secrets Manager, Azure Key Vault) allows for secure storage, automatic rotation, and granular access control.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Using a cloud provider's Secret Management service.
Why this is correct
Managed services provide auditability, rotation, and lifecycle management.
- ✗
Hardcoding them in a secure configuration file.
Why it's wrong here
This still risks exposure via file access or log leaks.
- ✗
Storing them in Git using an encrypted file.
Why it's wrong here
Secrets should never be stored in Git, even if encrypted.
- ✗
Passing them as command-line arguments at runtime.
Why it's wrong here
Command-line arguments are often visible to other users and in system logs.
Quick reference
AWS S3 Storage Class Comparison
| Storage Class | Min Duration | Retrieval | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3 Standard | None | Immediate | Frequently accessed data |
| S3 Standard-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Infrequent access, rapid retrieval |
| S3 One Zone-IA | 30 days | Immediate | Non-critical infrequent data |
| S3 Intelligent-Tiering | None | Immediate–hours | Unknown or changing access patterns |
| S3 Glacier Instant | 90 days | Milliseconds | Archive with instant retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Flexible | 90 days | Minutes–hours | Archive, flexible retrieval |
| S3 Glacier Deep Archive | 180 days | Hours | Long-term compliance archive |
About these practice questions
One of 208 original ISC practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed August 2026 · checked against the official (ISC)² exam blueprint
This ISC practice question is part of Courseiva's free (ISC)² 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 ISC exam.