- A
Grant the instance's service account the roles/iam.serviceAccountUser role on the SA in project B, and grant the SA in project B roles/storage.objectViewer.
roles/iam.serviceAccountUser includes the 'actAs' permission. This allows the instance to impersonate the target SA, which already has the storage role.
- B
Grant the instance's service account the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the SA in project B.
Why wrong: roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator allows creating tokens but not impersonation. The correct role is serviceAccountUser (actAs).
- C
Create a new service account in project A with the necessary storage permissions and use that.
Why wrong: This does not use the SA in project B. The requirement is to impersonate the specific SA in project B.
- D
Grant the instance's service account the roles/storage.objectViewer role directly.
Why wrong: This would give the instance direct access, but the requirement is to impersonate the SA in project B. Also, the instance might not have permission to access resources across projects.
PCSE roles/iam.serviceAccountUser Practice Question
This PCSE practice question tests your understanding of configuring access within a cloud solution environment. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. A key principle to apply: roles/iam.serviceAccountUser. 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 security engineer needs to grant a team the ability to impersonate a service account (SA) in project B from a Compute Engine instance in project A. The SA in project B has the required permissions to access Cloud Storage. What IAM configuration is required?
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
Grant the instance's service account the roles/iam.serviceAccountUser role on the SA in project B, and grant the SA in project B roles/storage.objectViewer.
Option A is correct because it combines two necessary steps: first, the instance's service account in project A needs the roles/iam.serviceAccountUser role on the target service account in project B to gain impersonation privileges; second, the target service account in project B must have roles/storage.objectViewer to access Cloud Storage. Without both, the impersonation would either fail (no permission to use the target SA) or the target SA would lack the storage access.
Key principle: roles/iam.serviceAccountUser
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Grant the instance's service account the roles/iam.serviceAccountUser role on the SA in project B, and grant the SA in project B roles/storage.objectViewer.
Why this is correct
roles/iam.serviceAccountUser includes the 'actAs' permission. This allows the instance to impersonate the target SA, which already has the storage role.
Related concept
roles/iam.serviceAccountUser
- ✗
Grant the instance's service account the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the SA in project B.
Why it's wrong here
roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator allows creating tokens but not impersonation. The correct role is serviceAccountUser (actAs).
- ✗
Create a new service account in project A with the necessary storage permissions and use that.
Why it's wrong here
This does not use the SA in project B. The requirement is to impersonate the specific SA in project B.
- ✗
Grant the instance's service account the roles/storage.objectViewer role directly.
Why it's wrong here
This would give the instance direct access, but the requirement is to impersonate the SA in project B. Also, the instance might not have permission to access resources across projects.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
A common mistake in Google Cloud is confusing roles/iam.serviceAccountUser (allows impersonation) with roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator (generates tokens but doesn't grant impersonation). For cross-project impersonation, you need both the impersonator's SA to have serviceAccountUser on the target SA and the target SA to have the necessary resource permissions.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, impersonation uses the IAM method serviceAccounts.impersonate to obtain an OAuth 2.0 access token for the target service account; the roles/iam.serviceAccountUser permission is required to call this method. The target SA must then have the actual resource-level permissions (e.g., storage.objectViewer) to perform the intended actions. In a real-world scenario, this pattern is used to centralize permissions: the instance SA only needs impersonation rights, while the target SA holds all sensitive storage permissions, reducing the blast radius of a compromised instance.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- roles/iam.serviceAccountUser
- roles/storage.objectViewer
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
roles/iam.serviceAccountUser
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.
Review roles/iam.serviceAccountUser, then practise related PCSE questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
- →
Configuring Access Within a Cloud Solution Environment — study guide chapter
Learn the concepts, then practise the questions
- →
Configuring Access Within a Cloud Solution Environment practice questions
Targeted practice on this topic area only
- →
All PCSE questions
1,000 questions across all exam domains
- →
Google Professional Cloud Security Engineer study guide
Full concept coverage aligned to exam objectives
- →
PCSE practice test guide
How to use practice tests most effectively before exam day
Related practice questions
Related PCSE practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
Configuring Access Within a Cloud Solution Environment practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to Configuring Access Within a Cloud Solution Environment.
Ensuring Data Protection practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to Ensuring Data Protection.
Managing Operations in a Cloud Solution Environment practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to Managing Operations in a Cloud Solution Environment.
Configuring Network Security practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to Configuring Network Security.
Supporting Compliance Requirements practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to Supporting Compliance Requirements.
PCSE fundamentals practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to PCSE fundamentals.
PCSE scenario practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to PCSE scenario.
PCSE troubleshooting practice questions
Practise PCSE questions linked to PCSE troubleshooting.
Practice this exam
Start a free PCSE practice session
Short sessions build daily habit. Longer sessions build exam-day stamina. Try a timed session to simulate real conditions.
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this PCSE question test?
Configuring Access Within a Cloud Solution Environment — This question tests Configuring Access Within a Cloud Solution Environment — roles/iam.serviceAccountUser.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Grant the instance's service account the roles/iam.serviceAccountUser role on the SA in project B, and grant the SA in project B roles/storage.objectViewer. — Option A is correct because it combines two necessary steps: first, the instance's service account in project A needs the roles/iam.serviceAccountUser role on the target service account in project B to gain impersonation privileges; second, the target service account in project B must have roles/storage.objectViewer to access Cloud Storage. Without both, the impersonation would either fail (no permission to use the target SA) or the target SA would lack the storage access.
What should I do if I get this PCSE question wrong?
Review roles/iam.serviceAccountUser, then practise related PCSE questions on the same topic to reinforce the concept.
What is the key concept behind this question?
roles/iam.serviceAccountUser
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Keep practising
More PCSE practice questions
- Match each encryption scope to its description.
- Drag and drop the steps to set up a Private Google Access for on-premises hosts using Private Service Connect in the cor…
- A company is designing a CI/CD pipeline using Cloud Build. Security requirements mandate that the pipeline deploy only t…
- A company must implement data residency requirements that prohibit storing data outside the European Union. They are usi…
- A company wants to allow employees to access a web application running on Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) using their cor…
- A company is deploying a multi-tier application on Google Cloud. The web tier must be accessible from the internet, whil…
Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
This PCSE 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 PCSE exam.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.