How do you store secrets in a .NET app?
PICTURE THIS: HOW TO EXPLAIN IT
Simple meaning
Not in source or appsettings committed to git.
WHY — Security instead of guessing?
Why interviewers care about Security:
question about Security.
trade-offs, and what you would actually do on a .NET project - not buzzwords.
Name the idea, why it exists, then one short example.
End with when you use it and one common pitfall.
STEPS — What happens step by step?
Before you speak the answer, walk the interviewer through these steps:
- 1Not in source or
appsettings committed to git.
- 2User secrets locally, environment
variables or a vault in production, and IOptions to bind them.
- 3Connection strings and API
keys go through configuration, never literals.
- 4Give an example
One tiny concrete case you can say aloud.
- 5Common mistake
What juniors usually get wrong.
- 6Close
When you pick this over the alternative.
EXAMPLE — See it in action
Here's a short line you can speak, broken into clear beats:
Note: Adapt this scaffold to your own project — keep it under 60–90 seconds.
Key takeaway
Not in source or appsettings committed to git. User secrets locally, environment variables or a vault in production, and IOptions to bind them.