Google Cloud Professional Cloud Security Engineer Practice Exam

What is the first step to using Cloud External Key Manager for encrypting BigQuery data at rest?

1. Create a key with a unique URI in an external key management partner system

2. Install the Cloud External Key Manager API

3. Define IAM roles for key management

4. Set up data encryption policies in BigQuery

The correct answer is: Create a key with a unique URI in an external key management partner system

Creating a key with a unique URI in an external key management partner system is the foundational step for using Cloud External Key Manager to encrypt BigQuery data at rest. This step establishes the cryptographic key that will be used for encryption, which is essential before any data can be secured. Once the key has been created, it serves as a reference that BigQuery can use to encrypt and decrypt data securely. External key management is particularly important in compliance and security contexts, as it allows users to manage and maintain control over their encryption keys outside of Google Cloud's infrastructure. While the other options involve important aspects of the setup and operational process, they depend on first having a key to work with. For instance, defining IAM roles for key management and setting up data encryption policies can only be effectively performed once the key is created, ensuring that the correct permissions and policies are aligned with the key's existence and use. Simply putting in place the API or configurations without a key would not achieve the goal of encrypting data at rest.