The correct solution is Clear the existing content cache by performing a CloudFront cache invalidation request. When using Amazon CloudFront with an S3 bucket for static website hosting, CloudFront caches content at edge locations to improve performance. If the cache is not explicitly invalidated, end users may continue to see outdated versions of the content even after new files are deployed to S3. Invalidation ensures that CloudFront fetches the latest version from the origin (S3) the next time it serves the content.

The option Attach an Application Load Balancer to route traffic dynamically to the backend is irrelevant in this context. The application is a static website, and there is no need for a load balancer between CloudFront and S3.

The choice Add an Amazon ElastiCache layer to the applications database to reduce latency and improve freshness addresses database performance, but the issue here is stale website content, not backend latency or database response.

The option Use AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) to revalidate the SSL certificate for the CloudFront distribution is unrelated. SSL certificate validation ensures secure communication but does not impact whether updated website content is served.

This question tests your understanding of caching behavior in CloudFront and how it can interfere with content freshness. A key tip is to look for clues involving static content delivery and CI/CD pipelines appearing to work correctly. That typically points to a caching issue, which can be resolved with a targeted invalidation strategy.

The challenge here is filtering out distractors like SSL or load balancing and focusing on how content propagation and cache control work in a CDN-based environment. CloudFront invalidation is often overlooked but is critical in workflows that involve frequent static content updates.

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