The answer is that the service account in Org A is missing the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the service account in Org B. This is because cross-org access with workload identity federation and service account impersonation requires the external identity—here, the service account in Org A—to be granted the Token Creator role on the target service account in Org B. Without this role, the impersonation call fails, even though the Workload Identity User role is correctly assigned, because impersonation demands the ability to generate short-lived tokens for the target account. On the Google Professional Cloud Security Engineer exam, this scenario tests your understanding of the two-step permission chain: first, the external identity must have the Workload Identity User role to impersonate, and second, it must have the Service Account Token Creator role to actually mint tokens. A common trap is assuming the Spanner role alone suffices, but the impersonation layer is the missing link. Remember the mnemonic “Impersonate, then Tokenize”—you need both roles for cross-org access to work.
PCSE Practice Question: Configuring access within a cloud solution environment
This PCSE practice question tests your understanding of configuring access within a cloud solution environment. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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 large enterprise has multiple Google Cloud organizations due to an acquisition. They want to allow a team in Org A to access a Cloud Spanner database in Org B. The team in Org A uses a service account for their application. They have set up Workload Identity Federation between the two organizations. The service account in Org B has the roles/spanner.databaseUser role on the database. The service account in Org A has been granted the roles/iam.workloadIdentityUser role on the service account in Org B. However, access attempts are failing with a permission denied error. What is the most likely missing configuration?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "most likely"
Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The service account in Org A does not have the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the service account in Org B.
Option D is correct because the external identity (service account in Org A) must be impersonating the service account in Org B, but the impersonation requires the service account in Org A to have the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the service account in Org B. Option A is wrong because the roles are correctly assigned. Option B is wrong because the Spanner database does not need the impersonation role. Option C is wrong because the project-level Spanner role would not be the issue.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
The project in Org B has not granted the roles/spanner.databaseUser role at the project level.
Why it's wrong here
The role is granted at the database level.
✗
The Spanner database does not have the service account in Org A granted access directly.
Why it's wrong here
The impersonation should work with the Spanner role on the service account in Org B.
✗
The service account in Org B does not have the roles/iam.workloadIdentityUser role on itself.
Why it's wrong here
That role is on the service account in Org B to allow impersonation.
✓
The service account in Org A does not have the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the service account in Org B.
Why this is correct
To impersonate, the external identity needs the serviceAccountTokenCreator role.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related PCSE NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Configuring access within a cloud solution environment — This question tests Configuring access within a cloud solution environment — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: The service account in Org A does not have the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the service account in Org B. — Option D is correct because the external identity (service account in Org A) must be impersonating the service account in Org B, but the impersonation requires the service account in Org A to have the roles/iam.serviceAccountTokenCreator role on the service account in Org B. Option A is wrong because the roles are correctly assigned. Option B is wrong because the Spanner database does not need the impersonation role. Option C is wrong because the project-level Spanner role would not be the issue.
What should I do if I get this PCSE question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related PCSE NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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