This PCA practice question tests your understanding of design for security and compliance. 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.
Which TWO methods can be used to encrypt data at rest in BigQuery?
Use a Cloud Storage bucket with bucket-level default encryption.
Why wrong: BigQuery is not Cloud Storage.
Use Customer-Managed Encryption Keys (CMEK) via Cloud KMS.
BigQuery tables can use CMEK.
Use Cloud SQL with encryption at rest.
Why wrong: Cloud SQL is a different service.
Use Customer-Supplied Encryption Keys (CSEK).
BigQuery supports CSEK.
Use Cloud Bigtable with encryption at rest.
Why wrong: Cloud Bigtable is a different service.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Use Customer-Managed Encryption Keys (CMEK) via Cloud KMS.
BigQuery supports both CMEK (Cloud KMS key) and CSEK (customer-supplied encryption key) for data at rest encryption. Option C is for Cloud Storage, not BigQuery. Option D is for Cloud SQL. Option E is for Bigtable.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Use a Cloud Storage bucket with bucket-level default encryption.
Why it's wrong here
BigQuery is not Cloud Storage.
Use Customer-Managed Encryption Keys (CMEK) via Cloud KMS.
Why this is correct
BigQuery tables can use CMEK.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Use Cloud SQL with encryption at rest.
Why it's wrong here
Cloud SQL is a different service.
Use Customer-Supplied Encryption Keys (CSEK).
Why this is correct
BigQuery supports CSEK.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Use Cloud Bigtable with encryption at rest.
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Bigtable is a different service.
Common exam traps
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
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.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
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.
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FAQ
Design for security and compliance — This question tests Design for security and compliance — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Use Customer-Managed Encryption Keys (CMEK) via Cloud KMS. — BigQuery supports both CMEK (Cloud KMS key) and CSEK (customer-supplied encryption key) for data at rest encryption. Option C is for Cloud Storage, not BigQuery. Option D is for Cloud SQL. Option E is for Bigtable.
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.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 24, 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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