Databricks-DE-Pro Data Modelling Practice Question
A company requires data to be physically deleted from the Bronze layer for GDPR compliance. What is the correct procedure to ensure complete removal?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates frequently select only the DELETE statement, forgetting that Delta Lake maintains historical versions of data files. Without VACUUM, the data remains physically present in the storage layer for recovery purposes.
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
✓
Run the DELETE statement and then run the VACUUM command.
Under GDPR, 'deletion' requires the actual removal of data from all storage locations. In Delta Lake, running a DELETE statement followed by a VACUUM command is necessary. DELETE removes the records from the active state, but the underlying data files remain until VACUUM removes them. This two-step process ensures the data is logically removed, and then physically purged from the storage provider, satisfying the right to be forgotten.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Simply run the DELETE statement; Delta handles physical deletion automatically.
Why it's wrong here
DELETE only marks records as deleted in the current state of the Delta table. The underlying Parquet files still contain the data until the VACUUM command is run. For GDPR compliance, this is insufficient, as the data remains retrievable through time travel or by accessing the files directly.
- ✓
Run the DELETE statement and then run the VACUUM command.
Why this is correct
The DELETE command updates the Delta log to exclude the records from future reads. Running VACUUM removes the orphaned files that contain the deleted data. This combination ensures the records are both logically and physically removed from the data lake, fulfilling the legal requirements of GDPR compliance.
- ✗
Use the OPTIMIZE command to force the deletion of the records.
Why it's wrong here
OPTIMIZE is a compaction command used to reorganize data into larger files for better read performance. It does not perform deletions. While it might overwrite files containing the data, it is not a reliable method for data deletion and cannot be used to guarantee compliance with privacy regulations.
- ✗
Overwriting the table with a filtered subset using the OVERWRITE option.
Why it's wrong here
While overwriting effectively removes records, it is a destructive operation that replaces the entire table. If you have many users or concurrent processes, this approach is dangerous and not standard practice for GDPR deletion. It is prone to error and does not offer the same granularity as DELETE.
About these practice questions
This Databricks-DE-Pro question is part of Courseiva's 267-question bank — original exam-style content with full explanations and wrong-answer analysis, never real exam questions or exam dumps. 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 September 2026 · checked against the official Databricks exam blueprint
This Databricks-DE-Pro practice question is part of Courseiva's free Databricks 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 Databricks-DE-Pro exam.