Google PCA Practice Question: Designing and Planning a Cloud Solution Architecture
This PCA practice question tests your understanding of designing and planning a cloud solution architecture. 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. 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 Storage to store sensitive customer data. They must ensure that data at rest is encrypted with a customer-managed key that is automatically rotated every 90 days. Which Cloud Storage configuration should they use?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Enable default encryption with a customer-managed key (CMEK) from Cloud KMS with automatic rotation set to 90 days
Cloud Storage supports CMEK (Customer-Managed Encryption Keys) via Cloud KMS. By using a Cloud KMS key with automatic rotation period of 90 days, objects written to the bucket are encrypted with that key. The bucket's default encryption is set to that key. Customer-supplied encryption keys (CSEK) require manual key management and no automatic rotation. SSE with Google-managed keys does not meet the customer-managed requirement. Using a Cloud HSM key also supports CMEK but for automatic rotation, KMS key rotation is sufficient.
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) and rotate them manually
Why it's wrong here
CSEK requires you to supply the key on each request; no automatic rotation.
✓
Enable default encryption with a customer-managed key (CMEK) from Cloud KMS with automatic rotation set to 90 days
Why this is correct
CMEK with KMS rotation meets the requirement: customer-managed, automatic rotation.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Use Cloud HSM to create a key and set the bucket to use that key without rotation policy
Why it's wrong here
HSM keys can be used as CMEK, but without rotation policy, keys are not automatically rotated.
✗
Use Google-managed encryption keys (SSE-GM)
Why it's wrong here
SSE-GM encrypts data but Google manages the keys, not the customer.
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.
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 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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this PCA question in full detail.
Identify which PCA 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.
Designing and Planning a Cloud Solution Architecture — This question tests Designing and Planning a Cloud Solution Architecture — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Enable default encryption with a customer-managed key (CMEK) from Cloud KMS with automatic rotation set to 90 days — Cloud Storage supports CMEK (Customer-Managed Encryption Keys) via Cloud KMS. By using a Cloud KMS key with automatic rotation period of 90 days, objects written to the bucket are encrypted with that key. The bucket's default encryption is set to that key. Customer-supplied encryption keys (CSEK) require manual key management and no automatic rotation. SSE with Google-managed keys does not meet the customer-managed requirement. Using a Cloud HSM key also supports CMEK but for automatic rotation, KMS key rotation is sufficient.
What should I do if I get this PCA question wrong?
Identify which PCA 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.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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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.
Question Discussion
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