Google ACE Practice Question: Alice is trying to create a Pub/Sub topic in the…
This ACE practice question tests your understanding of ace exam topics. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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.
Alice is trying to create a Pub/Sub topic in the us-east1 region using the gcloud command-line tool from her local machine. She has the roles/pubsub.editor role. The command fails with a permission denied error. What is the most likely cause?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The IAM role assigned to Alice is conditional and only applies to resources in us-central1.
Option D is correct because the IAM role assigned to Alice includes a condition that restricts its effectiveness to resources in us-central1. Since Alice is trying to create a topic in us-east1, the condition does not match, resulting in a permission denied error. Option A is incorrect because if the Pub/Sub API were not enabled, the error would indicate that the API is disabled. Option B is incorrect because the question states that Alice has the roles/pubsub.editor role. Option C is incorrect because the iam.serviceAccounts.actAs permission is not required for creating a Pub/Sub topic; it is needed for deploying resources that use service accounts.
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.
✗
The Pub/Sub API is not enabled for the project.
Why it's wrong here
If the API were disabled, the error would indicate that, not a permission denied.
✗
Alice does not have the roles/pubsub.editor role.
Why it's wrong here
The exhibit shows she does have that role, but it is conditional.
✗
Alice lacks the iam.serviceAccounts.actAs permission on the Pub/Sub service account.
Why it's wrong here
actAs permission is needed for deploying resources that use service accounts, not for creating Pub/Sub topics directly.
✓
The IAM role assigned to Alice is conditional and only applies to resources in us-central1.
Why this is correct
The condition in the binding restricts the role to resources with location 'us-central1', so creating a topic in us-east1 fails.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Trap categories for this question
Command / output trap
The exhibit shows she does have that role, but it is conditional.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this ACE question in full detail.
Identify which ACE exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The IAM role assigned to Alice is conditional and only applies to resources in us-central1. — Option D is correct because the IAM role assigned to Alice includes a condition that restricts its effectiveness to resources in us-central1. Since Alice is trying to create a topic in us-east1, the condition does not match, resulting in a permission denied error. Option A is incorrect because if the Pub/Sub API were not enabled, the error would indicate that the API is disabled. Option B is incorrect because the question states that Alice has the roles/pubsub.editor role. Option C is incorrect because the iam.serviceAccounts.actAs permission is not required for creating a Pub/Sub topic; it is needed for deploying resources that use service accounts.
What should I do if I get this ACE question wrong?
Identify which ACE exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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