Cloud Digital Leader Trust and security with Google Cloud Practice Question
This GCDL practice question tests your understanding of trust and security with google cloud. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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 uses Cloud SQL for MySQL and wants to ensure that data is encrypted at rest using customer-managed keys. They also need to rotate the key every 90 days. What should they do?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Enable CMEK on the Cloud SQL instance and rotate the key in Cloud KMS
Option C is correct because Cloud SQL supports Customer-Managed Encryption Keys (CMEK) via integration with Cloud KMS. By enabling CMEK on the Cloud SQL instance, you can use a key you create and manage in Cloud KMS, and you can set a rotation period (e.g., 90 days) on that key in Cloud KMS. This ensures data at rest is encrypted with a key you control and that is automatically rotated according to your schedule.
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 customer-supplied encryption keys (CSEK) with Cloud SQL
Why it's wrong here
CSEK is not supported for Cloud SQL.
✗
Use default Google-managed encryption and rotate the key using Cloud KMS
Why it's wrong here
Default encryption uses Google-managed keys, which cannot be rotated by customer.
✓
Enable CMEK on the Cloud SQL instance and rotate the key in Cloud KMS
Why this is correct
Cloud SQL can be configured with a CMEK key from Cloud KMS, and the key can be rotated as needed.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Bring your own key (BYOK) without using Cloud KMS
Why it's wrong here
BYOK requires Cloud KMS integration (CMEK).
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates confuse CSEK (Compute Engine/Cloud Storage) with CMEK (Cloud SQL, BigQuery, etc.) and assume any customer-managed key option works for Cloud SQL, or they think default Google-managed keys can be rotated by the customer.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
CMEK for Cloud SQL uses envelope encryption: the Cloud KMS key (key encryption key) encrypts a data encryption key (DEK), which then encrypts the data. When you rotate the Cloud KMS key, the DEK is re-encrypted with the new key version, but the underlying data is not re-encrypted; this is efficient and meets compliance requirements like PCI DSS or SOC 2 that mandate periodic key rotation. In a real-world scenario, if a security policy requires key rotation every 90 days, you would set a rotation schedule on the Cloud KMS key, and Cloud SQL automatically uses the latest key version for new writes.
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 cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this GCDL question in full detail.
Trust and security with Google Cloud — This question tests Trust and security with Google Cloud — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Enable CMEK on the Cloud SQL instance and rotate the key in Cloud KMS — Option C is correct because Cloud SQL supports Customer-Managed Encryption Keys (CMEK) via integration with Cloud KMS. By enabling CMEK on the Cloud SQL instance, you can use a key you create and manage in Cloud KMS, and you can set a rotation period (e.g., 90 days) on that key in Cloud KMS. This ensures data at rest is encrypted with a key you control and that is automatically rotated according to your schedule.
What should I do if I get this GCDL 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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Question Discussion
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