Question 1easymultiple choice
Full question →Question 179 of 300
easymultiple choiceObjective-mapped
GCDL Practice Question: A developer accidentally commits an application's…
This GCDL practice question tests your understanding of a developer accidentally commits an application's…. 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 developer accidentally commits an application's Google Cloud service account key to a public GitHub repository. The key is valid and grants access to production resources. What is the correct immediate response?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Best answer
Immediately revoke/delete the exposed service account key in Google Cloud IAM, review Cloud Audit Logs for unauthorized access, and generate a new key distributed through secure channels
This is the complete correct response: (1) Revoke the key immediately to stop any ongoing unauthorized access. (2) Review Admin Activity and Data Access audit logs to determine if the key was used after exposure. (3) Issue a new key through a secure distribution channel (ideally Secret Manager, not environment variables). Time to revocation is critical.
B
Distractor review
Delete the commit from GitHub history using git rebase; the key is safe once removed from the repository
GitHub history cannot reliably be purged — the data may already be cached, indexed, or copied. Even if removed from history, the key must be treated as compromised because it was publicly visible. Deletion from Git history is not a remediation; revocation of the key is.
C
Distractor review
Send an internal email informing the security team and wait for their guidance before taking any action
Every minute of delay extends the window of unauthorized access. Immediate action (key revocation) does not require waiting for security team guidance — revoking a compromised key is an unambiguously correct immediate action.
D
Distractor review
Change the service account's permissions to read-only to limit the damage from potential misuse
Changing permissions doesn't revoke the exposed key — unauthorized users can still authenticate. And reducing permissions is a weaker control than full revocation. The exposed key must be invalidated, not just restricted.
Common exam trap
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.
Technical deep dive
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.
Related practice questions
Related GCDL practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
A traditional retailer currently maintains its own data centers, purchasing servers every 3–5 years and paying for facilities, power, and staff regardless of demand. When it migrates its workloads to the public cloud, which change in cost model does it experience?
Question 2
An e-commerce company plans its infrastructure for peak shopping events (e.g., Black Friday) which drive 50× normal traffic. On-premises, they must maintain 50× capacity year-round. In the cloud, they provision 50× capacity only during peak periods. Which cloud characteristic enables this cost optimization?
Question 3
Which term describes the process by which organizations integrate digital technology into all areas of their business, fundamentally changing how they operate and deliver value to customers?
Question 4
When a company moves from maintaining its own data center to using Google Cloud, which operational responsibility does Google assume that the company previously managed?
Question 5
A hospital runs a patient records system that must remain on-premises due to strict regulatory data residency requirements. However, they also want to use cloud-based AI for diagnostic imaging analysis. Which cloud deployment model best describes their architecture?
Question 6
What is virtualization in the context of cloud computing, and why is it fundamental to how cloud providers deliver services?
Practice this exam
Start a free GCDL 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 GCDL question test?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Immediately revoke/delete the exposed service account key in Google Cloud IAM, review Cloud Audit Logs for unauthorized access, and generate a new key distributed through secure channels — Once a service account key is exposed in a public repository, it must be treated as fully compromised — anyone who saw it (including automated secret scanners and malicious actors) may have already used it. The immediate response is to revoke/delete the exposed key (not just rotate it — rotating doesn't invalidate old keys), and then audit activity logs for unauthorized use since the exposure.
What should I do if I get this GCDL question wrong?
Identify which GCDL 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.
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 →
Discussion
Loading comments…
Sign in to join the discussion.
This GCDL 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 GCDL exam.