The answer is granting the service account the Storage Object Viewer role on the specific bucket. This is correct because it applies the principle of least privilege by scoping read-only access to exactly one bucket, preventing the service account from inadvertently listing or reading objects in other buckets within the same project. On the Google Professional Cloud Database Engineer exam, this scenario tests your understanding of IAM role inheritance versus resource-level binding, often appearing as a trap where candidates choose a project-level role like Storage Object Viewer, which would grant access to all buckets. The key distinction is that bucket-level IAM roles are more secure and manageable than legacy ACLs or broader project roles. Memory tip: think “bucket-bound, not project-prone” — always attach the role directly to the bucket resource to keep access tight and secure.
PCDE Plan and manage database infrastructure Practice Question
This PCDE practice question tests your understanding of plan and manage database infrastructure. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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 data engineer needs to grant a service account read-only access to a Cloud Storage bucket containing sensitive data. The service account is used by a Compute Engine instance. What is the most secure way to assign the permissions?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Grant the service account the Storage Object Viewer role on the specific bucket.
Option D is correct because granting the Storage Object Viewer role at the bucket level applies the principle of least privilege, restricting the service account's read-only access to only that specific bucket. This avoids granting broader permissions at the project level, which would inadvertently allow access to all buckets in the project. Using IAM roles is more secure and manageable than legacy bucket ACLs.
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.
✗
Set bucket ACLs to allow read access for the service account.
Why it's wrong here
IAM is preferred over ACLs for uniformity and auditability.
✗
Make the bucket public and rely on network restrictions.
Why it's wrong here
Public access is a security risk.
✗
Grant the service account the Storage Object Viewer role at the project level.
Why it's wrong here
Project-level role gives access to all buckets in the project, violating least privilege.
✓
Grant the service account the Storage Object Viewer role on the specific bucket.
Why this is correct
Bucket-level IAM grants least privilege.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Google Cloud often tests the principle of least privilege by making candidates choose between project-level and resource-level IAM roles, where the trap is assuming project-level roles are acceptable without considering the broader access they grant.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, Cloud Storage IAM roles are evaluated at the resource hierarchy (organization, folder, project, bucket) and are inherited downward. Granting at the bucket level overrides any project-level deny policies but does not inherit to other buckets. In real-world scenarios, a service account used by a Compute Engine instance should also have its access scopes configured correctly; if the instance's access scopes do not include 'storage-ro' (read-only), the IAM role alone will not grant access, as scopes act as a cap on permissions.
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 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.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Plan and manage database infrastructure — This question tests Plan and manage database infrastructure — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Grant the service account the Storage Object Viewer role on the specific bucket. — Option D is correct because granting the Storage Object Viewer role at the bucket level applies the principle of least privilege, restricting the service account's read-only access to only that specific bucket. This avoids granting broader permissions at the project level, which would inadvertently allow access to all buckets in the project. Using IAM roles is more secure and manageable than legacy bucket ACLs.
What should I do if I get this PCDE 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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