Cloud Armor for DDoS and WAF in GCP - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to create a Cloud Armor security policy.

GCP

gcloud compute security-policies create [1] --description="Block bad traffic"

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Ainstance-group

Bfirewall-rule

Cnetwork-route

Dmy-security-policy

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using instance group or firewall rule names instead of a security policy name.

Confusing network routes with security policies.

The command creates a Cloud Armor security policy named my-security-policy.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to add a rule to block traffic from a specific IP address.

GCP

gcloud compute security-policies rules create 100 --security-policy [1] --expression="origin.ip == '203.0.113.1'" --action=deny-403

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Amy-security-policy

Bmy-instance

Cdefault-firewall

Dnetwork-policy

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using instance or firewall names instead of the security policy name.

Confusing network policies with Cloud Armor policies.

The rule is added to the Cloud Armor security policy named my-security-policy.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the command to apply the security policy to a backend service.

GCP

gcloud compute backend-services update [1] --security-policy my-security-policy --global

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Amy-instance

Bmy-backend-service

Cmy-firewall

Dmy-network

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using instance or firewall names instead of backend service names.

Confusing network names with backend services.

The backend service named my-backend-service is the correct target for applying the security policy.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to create a rule that allows traffic only from a specific country.

GCP

gcloud compute security-policies rules create 200 --security-policy [1] --expression="origin.region_code == '[2]'" --action=allow

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Amy-security-policy

BUS

CEU

Ddefault-policy

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using incorrect policy names or invalid region codes.

Confusing region codes with IP addresses.

The rule allows traffic only from the country with region code US in the security policy my-security-policy.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to create a rule that blocks SQL injection attempts.

GCP

gcloud compute security-policies rules create 300 --security-policy [1] --expression="evaluatePreconfiguredExpr('[2]')" --action=[3]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Amy-security-policy

Bsqli-v33-stable

Cdeny-403

Dallow

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using allow action instead of deny for blocking attacks.

Using incorrect preconfigured expression names.

This rule uses the preconfigured SQL injection expression sqli-v33-stable to block attacks by returning a 403 error in the my-security-policy.

Practice

1. What is the main purpose of Google Cloud Armor in protecting your applications?

easy

A. To block bad traffic and protect against attacks like DDoS

B. To store application data securely

C. To manage user authentication and login

D. To monitor application performance metrics

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand Cloud Armor's role

   Cloud Armor is designed to protect applications from harmful traffic and attacks such as Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS).

2. Step 2: Compare options

   Options B, C, and D describe other services like storage, authentication, and monitoring, which are not Cloud Armor's main function.

3. Final Answer:

   To block bad traffic and protect against attacks like DDoS -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Cloud Armor protects apps from bad traffic = A [OK]

Hint: Cloud Armor blocks bad traffic and DDoS attacks [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing Cloud Armor with storage or authentication services
• Thinking Cloud Armor monitors performance instead of security

2. Which of the following is the correct way to create a Cloud Armor security policy using gcloud CLI?

easy

A. gcloud compute security-policies create my-policy --description="Protect app"

B. gcloud compute firewall-rules create my-policy --description="Protect app"

C. gcloud compute instances create my-policy --description="Protect app"

D. gcloud compute networks create my-policy --description="Protect app"

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify correct gcloud command for Cloud Armor policy

   The command to create a Cloud Armor security policy is under 'compute security-policies create'.

2. Step 2: Eliminate incorrect commands

   Firewall rules, instances, and networks are different resources and use different commands.

3. Final Answer:

   gcloud compute security-policies create my-policy --description="Protect app" -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Security policy creation uses 'compute security-policies create' = B [OK]

Hint: Cloud Armor policies use 'compute security-policies create' command [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using firewall or instance commands instead of security-policies
• Confusing network creation with security policy creation

3. Given this Cloud Armor rule snippet, what action will be taken for requests from IP 203.0.113.5?

{
  "expression": "origin.ip == '203.0.113.5'",
  "action": "deny(403)"
}

medium

A. Requests from 203.0.113.5 will be allowed

B. Requests from 203.0.113.5 will be denied with HTTP 403

C. Requests from all IPs except 203.0.113.5 will be denied

D. Requests from 203.0.113.5 will be redirected

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the rule expression and action

   The rule matches requests where the IP is exactly '203.0.113.5' and denies them with HTTP status 403.

2. Step 2: Understand the effect on matching IP

   Requests from 203.0.113.5 will be blocked and receive a 403 Forbidden response.

3. Final Answer:

   Requests from 203.0.113.5 will be denied with HTTP 403 -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   IP match with deny(403) means block = D [OK]

Hint: deny(403) blocks matching IPs with forbidden response [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking deny means allow
• Confusing deny with redirect or allow
• Assuming rule applies to all IPs

4. You created a Cloud Armor security policy but it is not blocking malicious traffic as expected. What is a common mistake to check?

medium

A. The Cloud Armor API is enabled in the project

B. The policy rules have correct IP addresses

C. The firewall rules allow all traffic

D. The security policy is not attached to the backend service or load balancer

Solution

1. Step 1: Verify policy attachment

   Cloud Armor policies must be attached to backend services or load balancers to take effect.

2. Step 2: Check other factors

   While correct IPs and API enablement matter, the main reason for no blocking is often missing attachment.

3. Final Answer:

   The security policy is not attached to the backend service or load balancer -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Policy must be attached to work = C [OK]

Hint: Attach policy to backend service or load balancer to activate [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Forgetting to attach policy to backend service
• Assuming policy works without attachment
• Ignoring API enablement or rule correctness

5. You want to protect your web app from both DDoS attacks and common web exploits. Which combination of Cloud Armor features should you use?

hard

A. Use Cloud Armor only for DDoS, and rely on firewall rules for web exploits

B. Only create IP-based allow/block rules without WAF

C. Create IP-based allow/block rules and enable the preconfigured WAF rules

D. Use Cloud Armor to monitor traffic but not block anything

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand protection needs

   DDoS protection requires blocking bad IPs; web exploits need WAF rules to detect attacks like SQL injection.

2. Step 2: Combine IP rules and WAF

   Cloud Armor supports both IP-based rules and preconfigured WAF rules to cover these threats together.

3. Final Answer:

   Create IP-based allow/block rules and enable the preconfigured WAF rules -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Use IP rules + WAF for full protection = A [OK]

Hint: Combine IP rules with WAF for best protection [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using only IP rules without WAF for web exploits
• Relying on firewall rules instead of Cloud Armor WAF
• Not enabling blocking, only monitoring