- A
A VPC firewall rule blocking pulls from unauthorized registries
Why wrong: Firewall rules control network-level traffic — they can't distinguish between authorized and unauthorized container registry pulls.
- B
Binary Authorization with a policy requiring attestation from the approved registry
Binary Authorization enforces image deployment policies on GKE clusters — it can require cryptographic attestations from approved registries and block non-compliant images at deploy time.
- C
Cloud Armor rules blocking container pull requests from external sources
Why wrong: Cloud Armor is a WAF for incoming HTTP traffic to load balancers — it doesn't control container image registry operations.
- D
Manually reviewing all Docker images before deployment
Why wrong: Manual review doesn't scale and can't enforce policy programmatically — Binary Authorization provides automated enforcement.
How to Enforce Approved Container Images on GKE Using Binary Authorization
This ACE practice question tests your understanding of ace exam topics. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
An organization needs to ensure that only images from their approved Container Registry (gcr.io/approved-project) can be deployed on GKE clusters in their organization. Which GCP control enforces this?
Quick Answer
The answer is Binary Authorization with a policy requiring attestation from the approved registry. This GCP control enforces deployment-time policies that mandate container images be signed by trusted authorities before they can run on GKE clusters. By configuring a Binary Authorization policy to require an attestation from the approved registry, such as gcr.io/approved-project, only images originating from that source are permitted, directly blocking any unapproved or unsigned images. On the Google Associate Cloud Engineer exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how Binary Authorization integrates with GKE to enforce supply chain security, often appearing as a scenario where you must choose the service that validates image provenance rather than simply restricting access via IAM. A common trap is confusing Binary Authorization with Container Registry access controls or VPC Service Controls, which manage storage or network boundaries but not deployment-time image approval. Memory tip: think of Binary Authorization as a bouncer checking IDs at the door—it doesn’t care where the image came from until it tries to deploy, and only signed images from your approved registry get past.
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
Binary Authorization with a policy requiring attestation from the approved registry
Binary Authorization enforces deployment-time policies that require images to be signed by trusted authorities. By configuring a policy that requires attestations from the approved registry (gcr.io/approved-project), only images from that registry can be deployed on GKE clusters, directly meeting the requirement.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
A VPC firewall rule blocking pulls from unauthorized registries
Why it's wrong here
Firewall rules control network-level traffic — they can't distinguish between authorized and unauthorized container registry pulls.
- ✓
Binary Authorization with a policy requiring attestation from the approved registry
Why this is correct
Binary Authorization enforces image deployment policies on GKE clusters — it can require cryptographic attestations from approved registries and block non-compliant images at deploy time.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Cloud Armor rules blocking container pull requests from external sources
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Armor is a WAF for incoming HTTP traffic to load balancers — it doesn't control container image registry operations.
- ✗
Manually reviewing all Docker images before deployment
Why it's wrong here
Manual review doesn't scale and can't enforce policy programmatically — Binary Authorization provides automated enforcement.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse network-level controls (firewalls, Cloud Armor) with deployment-time policy enforcement, mistakenly believing that blocking network traffic to unauthorized registries is equivalent to restricting which images can be deployed.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Binary Authorization integrates with GKE via admission webhooks that intercept Pod creation requests. The policy is evaluated against the image's attestations stored in Container Analysis; if the image lacks a valid attestation from the approved registry, the admission controller rejects the deployment. This mechanism relies on the Kritis (Kritis) signer and the Grafeas metadata API to verify signatures, ensuring only images with cryptographic proof of origin are allowed.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A healthcare organisation deploys an application with a public-facing web tier and a private database tier. The database subnet has no public IP and only accepts connections from the web tier's security group. Questions like this test whether you can design cloud network isolation using VNets/VPCs, subnets, and security group rules.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this ACE question test?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Binary Authorization with a policy requiring attestation from the approved registry — Binary Authorization enforces deployment-time policies that require images to be signed by trusted authorities. By configuring a policy that requires attestations from the approved registry (gcr.io/approved-project), only images from that registry can be deployed on GKE clusters, directly meeting the requirement.
What should I do if I get this ACE question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This ACE practice question is part of Courseiva's free Google Cloud 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 ACE exam.
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