Google Cloud Professional Cloud Security Engineer Practice Exam

To limit traffic from suspicious IP addresses to your global HTTP(S) load balancer, what should you configure?

1. Increase the load balancer's power

2. Implement a throttle action using Google Cloud Armor

3. Set up a firewall rule to block all traffic

4. Disable HTTP(S) load balancer temporarily

The correct answer is: Implement a throttle action using Google Cloud Armor

Implementing a throttle action using Google Cloud Armor is the most effective way to limit traffic from suspicious IP addresses to your global HTTP(S) load balancer. Google Cloud Armor is specifically designed to provide protections against various types of attacks and to enforce security policies at the edge of Google's network. Throttle actions allow you to limit the rate of requests from a specific IP address or a range of IPs, helping alleviate potential abuse or overload from suspicious sources while still allowing legitimate traffic. This ability to set fine-grained controls over incoming traffic is critical for maintaining the integrity and performance of your applications. In contrast, merely increasing the load balancer's power does not address the underlying issue of unwanted traffic, and it may only mask the problem without actually preventing access from suspicious IPs. Setting up a firewall rule to block all traffic may be overly broad and could inadvertently block legitimate users who might be accessing your services. Lastly, disabling the HTTP(S) load balancer temporarily is not a practical solution, as it would disrupt service availability entirely, rather than managing the traffic effectively.