- A
Use a Cloud Storage bucket with encryption at rest using CSEK.
Why wrong: Similar to A, does not restrict network access.
- B
Use Cloud Armor with IP allowlists and enable TLS for the bucket.
Why wrong: Cloud Armor is for HTTP(S) load balancing, not direct storage access.
- C
Create a VPC Service Controls perimeter with access levels, and require HTTPS for the bucket.
VPC Service Controls restrict access by network, and HTTPS ensures encryption in transit.
- D
Use a Cloud Storage bucket with encryption at rest using CMEK.
Why wrong: Encryption at rest does not restrict network access or enforce in-transit encryption.
Question 258 of 1,000
Google PCA Design for security and compliance Practice Question
This PCA practice question tests your understanding of design for security and compliance. 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.
A company has a fleet of Compute Engine instances that need to access a Cloud Storage bucket. The security team requires that only instances in specific VPC networks can access the bucket, and that the data is encrypted in transit. How can this be achieved?
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
✓
Create a VPC Service Controls perimeter with access levels, and require HTTPS for the bucket.
Option C is correct because VPC Service Controls allows you to define a security perimeter around Cloud Storage, restricting access to only requests originating from specific VPC networks. By configuring an access level that requires HTTPS, you enforce encryption in transit, meeting both the network restriction and data-in-transit encryption requirements.
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.
- ✗
Use a Cloud Storage bucket with encryption at rest using CSEK.
Why it's wrong here
Similar to A, does not restrict network access.
- ✗
Use Cloud Armor with IP allowlists and enable TLS for the bucket.
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Armor is for HTTP(S) load balancing, not direct storage access.
- ✓
Create a VPC Service Controls perimeter with access levels, and require HTTPS for the bucket.
Why this is correct
VPC Service Controls restrict access by network, and HTTPS ensures encryption in transit.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Use a Cloud Storage bucket with encryption at rest using CMEK.
Why it's wrong here
Encryption at rest does not restrict network access or enforce in-transit encryption.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
In the Google PCA exam, a common trap is confusing encryption at rest (CSEK/CMEK) with encryption in transit (HTTPS/TLS), and the fact that VPC Service Controls is the only option that combines network-level access restrictions with transport encryption enforcement.
Trap categories for this question
Similar concept trap
Similar to A, does not restrict network access.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
VPC Service Controls uses a perimeter that can include Cloud Storage, and you can define ingress rules that allow traffic only from specific VPC networks or IP ranges. The 'require HTTPS' setting in the access level ensures that all requests to the bucket use TLS 1.2 or higher, which encrypts data in transit. Under the hood, this works by intercepting API calls at the Google Front End (GFE) and checking the request's source network and protocol before allowing it to reach the bucket.
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 media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.
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.
- →
Design for security and compliance — study guide chapter
Learn the concepts, then practise the questions
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this PCA question test?
Design for security and compliance — This question tests Design for security and compliance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create a VPC Service Controls perimeter with access levels, and require HTTPS for the bucket. — Option C is correct because VPC Service Controls allows you to define a security perimeter around Cloud Storage, restricting access to only requests originating from specific VPC networks. By configuring an access level that requires HTTPS, you enforce encryption in transit, meeting both the network restriction and data-in-transit encryption requirements.
What should I do if I get this PCA 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: Jul 4, 2026
This PCA 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 PCA exam.
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