Cloud Run Deploy Permission Denied (iam.serviceaccounts.actAs)
Workaround available Cloud Run, gcloud, Cloud Build Updated November 14, 2026Based on 4 user reportsHow we research
Quick answer
Most Cloud Run deploy permission errors need the deployer to have Service Account User on the runtime service account. Specify a service account explicitly and grant the roles named in the error.
Most likely fix: actAs denied on the default Compute Engine account
How to fix it
Try these in order — the most common fix is first.
1. actAs denied on the default Compute Engine account
- Run gcloud run services update SERVICE_NAME --service-account SERVICE_ACCOUNT
- Confirm the service account has the permissions needed to deploy
- Check IAM with Include Google-provided role grants for PROJECT_NUMBER-compute@developer.gserviceaccount.com
Did this fix it?2. Grant Service Account User
- Grant roles/iam.serviceAccountUser to the deployer on the service identity
- If same project, give the Cloud Run service agent roles/run.serviceAgent
Did this fix it?3. Source deploy errors
- Grant roles/run.sourceDeveloper, roles/serviceusage.serviceUsageConsumer and roles/iam.serviceAccountUser
- For NOT_FOUND: Build failed in new projects, grant the build service account roles/run.builder
Did this fix it?4. Image in another project
- Let the Cloud Run service agent read the image (grant access in the image's project)
- If using VPC Service Controls, check Logs Explorer for violations tied to serverless-robot-prod
Did this fix it?5. Wait and retry
- IAM changes can take a few minutes to apply
Did this fix it?
Symptoms
gcloud run deploy fails with PERMISSION_DENIED, Permission 'iam.serviceaccounts.actAs' denied, or the caller does not have permission.
Why it happens
- Deployer lacks Service Account User on the runtime service account
- Default Compute Engine service account missing or not usable
- Cloud Run service agent cannot read an image from another project
- Missing source deploy roles
- Cloud Build default service account changes in new projects
- Cross-project deploy blocked by org policy
This guide also covers
- cloud run deploy permission denied
- iam.serviceaccounts.actAs denied
- gcloud run deploy the caller does not have permission
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