diff --git a/autogen/main/main.tf.tmpl b/autogen/main/main.tf.tmpl
index eeb04cfef..0bb004f07 100644
--- a/autogen/main/main.tf.tmpl
+++ b/autogen/main/main.tf.tmpl
@@ -164,8 +164,8 @@ locals {
   cluster_intranode_visibility_enabled     = local.cluster_output_intranode_visbility_enabled
   cluster_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled = local.cluster_output_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled
 
-  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == "" ? [] : [{
-    identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
+  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == null ? [] : var.identity_namespace == "enabled" ? [{
+  identity_namespace = "${var.project_id}.svc.id.goog"}] : [{identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
   }]
   # /BETA features
 {% endif %}
diff --git a/autogen/main/variables.tf.tmpl b/autogen/main/variables.tf.tmpl
index bedce28b5..c8c7f42f1 100644
--- a/autogen/main/variables.tf.tmpl
+++ b/autogen/main/variables.tf.tmpl
@@ -451,9 +451,9 @@ variable "enable_vertical_pod_autoscaling" {
 }
 
 variable "identity_namespace" {
-  description = "Workload Identity namespace"
+  description = "Workload Identity namespace. (Default value of `enabled` automatically sets project based namespace `project_id..svc.id.goog`)"
   type        = string
-  default     = ""
+  default     = "enabled"
 }
 
 variable "authenticator_security_group" {
@@ -471,6 +471,6 @@ variable "release_channel" {
 variable "enable_shielded_nodes" {
   type        = bool
   description = "Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster"
-  default     = false
+  default     = true
 }
 {% endif %}
diff --git a/examples/workload_identity/main.tf b/examples/workload_identity/main.tf
index ac1dd3303..d4e3db08c 100644
--- a/examples/workload_identity/main.tf
+++ b/examples/workload_identity/main.tf
@@ -41,7 +41,6 @@ module "gke" {
   ip_range_services        = var.ip_range_services
   remove_default_node_pool = true
   service_account          = "create"
-  identity_namespace       = "${var.project_id}.svc.id.goog"
   node_metadata            = "GKE_METADATA_SERVER"
   node_pools = [
     {
diff --git a/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/README.md b/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/README.md
index 690dd5c33..63de87bf8 100644
--- a/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/README.md
+++ b/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/README.md
@@ -174,12 +174,12 @@ Then perform the following commands on the root folder:
 | enable\_kubernetes\_alpha | Whether to enable Kubernetes Alpha features for this cluster. Note that when this option is enabled, the cluster cannot be upgraded and will be automatically deleted after 30 days. | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | enable\_private\_endpoint | (Beta) Whether the master's internal IP address is used as the cluster endpoint | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | enable\_private\_nodes | (Beta) Whether nodes have internal IP addresses only | bool | `"false"` | no |
-| enable\_shielded\_nodes | Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster | bool | `"false"` | no |
+| enable\_shielded\_nodes | Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster | bool | `"true"` | no |
 | enable\_vertical\_pod\_autoscaling | Vertical Pod Autoscaling automatically adjusts the resources of pods controlled by it | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | grant\_registry\_access | Grants created cluster-specific service account storage.objectViewer role. | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | horizontal\_pod\_autoscaling | Enable horizontal pod autoscaling addon | bool | `"true"` | no |
 | http\_load\_balancing | Enable httpload balancer addon | bool | `"true"` | no |
-| identity\_namespace | Workload Identity namespace | string | `""` | no |
+| identity\_namespace | Workload Identity namespace. (Default value of `enabled` automatically sets project based namespace `project_id..svc.id.goog`) | string | `"enabled"` | no |
 | initial\_node\_count | The number of nodes to create in this cluster's default node pool. | number | `"0"` | no |
 | ip\_masq\_link\_local | Whether to masquerade traffic to the link-local prefix (169.254.0.0/16). | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | ip\_masq\_resync\_interval | The interval at which the agent attempts to sync its ConfigMap file from the disk. | string | `"60s"` | no |
diff --git a/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/main.tf b/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/main.tf
index f49848021..2a7ca5caf 100644
--- a/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/main.tf
+++ b/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/main.tf
@@ -149,8 +149,8 @@ locals {
   cluster_intranode_visibility_enabled     = local.cluster_output_intranode_visbility_enabled
   cluster_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled = local.cluster_output_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled
 
-  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == "" ? [] : [{
-    identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
+  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == null ? [] : var.identity_namespace == "enabled" ? [{
+    identity_namespace = "${var.project_id}.svc.id.goog" }] : [{ identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
   }]
   # /BETA features
 
diff --git a/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/variables.tf b/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/variables.tf
index f320bb248..e9eba4646 100644
--- a/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/variables.tf
+++ b/modules/beta-private-cluster-update-variant/variables.tf
@@ -444,9 +444,9 @@ variable "enable_vertical_pod_autoscaling" {
 }
 
 variable "identity_namespace" {
-  description = "Workload Identity namespace"
+  description = "Workload Identity namespace. (Default value of `enabled` automatically sets project based namespace `project_id..svc.id.goog`)"
   type        = string
-  default     = ""
+  default     = "enabled"
 }
 
 variable "authenticator_security_group" {
@@ -464,5 +464,5 @@ variable "release_channel" {
 variable "enable_shielded_nodes" {
   type        = bool
   description = "Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster"
-  default     = false
+  default     = true
 }
diff --git a/modules/beta-private-cluster/README.md b/modules/beta-private-cluster/README.md
index 4b4ae0184..04a6c9795 100644
--- a/modules/beta-private-cluster/README.md
+++ b/modules/beta-private-cluster/README.md
@@ -152,12 +152,12 @@ Then perform the following commands on the root folder:
 | enable\_kubernetes\_alpha | Whether to enable Kubernetes Alpha features for this cluster. Note that when this option is enabled, the cluster cannot be upgraded and will be automatically deleted after 30 days. | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | enable\_private\_endpoint | (Beta) Whether the master's internal IP address is used as the cluster endpoint | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | enable\_private\_nodes | (Beta) Whether nodes have internal IP addresses only | bool | `"false"` | no |
-| enable\_shielded\_nodes | Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster | bool | `"false"` | no |
+| enable\_shielded\_nodes | Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster | bool | `"true"` | no |
 | enable\_vertical\_pod\_autoscaling | Vertical Pod Autoscaling automatically adjusts the resources of pods controlled by it | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | grant\_registry\_access | Grants created cluster-specific service account storage.objectViewer role. | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | horizontal\_pod\_autoscaling | Enable horizontal pod autoscaling addon | bool | `"true"` | no |
 | http\_load\_balancing | Enable httpload balancer addon | bool | `"true"` | no |
-| identity\_namespace | Workload Identity namespace | string | `""` | no |
+| identity\_namespace | Workload Identity namespace. (Default value of `enabled` automatically sets project based namespace `project_id..svc.id.goog`) | string | `"enabled"` | no |
 | initial\_node\_count | The number of nodes to create in this cluster's default node pool. | number | `"0"` | no |
 | ip\_masq\_link\_local | Whether to masquerade traffic to the link-local prefix (169.254.0.0/16). | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | ip\_masq\_resync\_interval | The interval at which the agent attempts to sync its ConfigMap file from the disk. | string | `"60s"` | no |
diff --git a/modules/beta-private-cluster/main.tf b/modules/beta-private-cluster/main.tf
index f49848021..2a7ca5caf 100644
--- a/modules/beta-private-cluster/main.tf
+++ b/modules/beta-private-cluster/main.tf
@@ -149,8 +149,8 @@ locals {
   cluster_intranode_visibility_enabled     = local.cluster_output_intranode_visbility_enabled
   cluster_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled = local.cluster_output_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled
 
-  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == "" ? [] : [{
-    identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
+  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == null ? [] : var.identity_namespace == "enabled" ? [{
+    identity_namespace = "${var.project_id}.svc.id.goog" }] : [{ identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
   }]
   # /BETA features
 
diff --git a/modules/beta-private-cluster/variables.tf b/modules/beta-private-cluster/variables.tf
index f320bb248..e9eba4646 100644
--- a/modules/beta-private-cluster/variables.tf
+++ b/modules/beta-private-cluster/variables.tf
@@ -444,9 +444,9 @@ variable "enable_vertical_pod_autoscaling" {
 }
 
 variable "identity_namespace" {
-  description = "Workload Identity namespace"
+  description = "Workload Identity namespace. (Default value of `enabled` automatically sets project based namespace `project_id..svc.id.goog`)"
   type        = string
-  default     = ""
+  default     = "enabled"
 }
 
 variable "authenticator_security_group" {
@@ -464,5 +464,5 @@ variable "release_channel" {
 variable "enable_shielded_nodes" {
   type        = bool
   description = "Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster"
-  default     = false
+  default     = true
 }
diff --git a/modules/beta-public-cluster/README.md b/modules/beta-public-cluster/README.md
index 76183a04c..3006302e4 100644
--- a/modules/beta-public-cluster/README.md
+++ b/modules/beta-public-cluster/README.md
@@ -131,12 +131,12 @@ Then perform the following commands on the root folder:
 | enable\_binary\_authorization | Enable BinAuthZ Admission controller | string | `"false"` | no |
 | enable\_intranode\_visibility | Whether Intra-node visibility is enabled for this cluster. This makes same node pod to pod traffic visible for VPC network | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | enable\_kubernetes\_alpha | Whether to enable Kubernetes Alpha features for this cluster. Note that when this option is enabled, the cluster cannot be upgraded and will be automatically deleted after 30 days. | bool | `"false"` | no |
-| enable\_shielded\_nodes | Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster | bool | `"false"` | no |
+| enable\_shielded\_nodes | Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster | bool | `"true"` | no |
 | enable\_vertical\_pod\_autoscaling | Vertical Pod Autoscaling automatically adjusts the resources of pods controlled by it | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | grant\_registry\_access | Grants created cluster-specific service account storage.objectViewer role. | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | horizontal\_pod\_autoscaling | Enable horizontal pod autoscaling addon | bool | `"true"` | no |
 | http\_load\_balancing | Enable httpload balancer addon | bool | `"true"` | no |
-| identity\_namespace | Workload Identity namespace | string | `""` | no |
+| identity\_namespace | Workload Identity namespace. (Default value of `enabled` automatically sets project based namespace `project_id..svc.id.goog`) | string | `"enabled"` | no |
 | initial\_node\_count | The number of nodes to create in this cluster's default node pool. | number | `"0"` | no |
 | ip\_masq\_link\_local | Whether to masquerade traffic to the link-local prefix (169.254.0.0/16). | bool | `"false"` | no |
 | ip\_masq\_resync\_interval | The interval at which the agent attempts to sync its ConfigMap file from the disk. | string | `"60s"` | no |
diff --git a/modules/beta-public-cluster/main.tf b/modules/beta-public-cluster/main.tf
index 4b03ff52d..39854b8b9 100644
--- a/modules/beta-public-cluster/main.tf
+++ b/modules/beta-public-cluster/main.tf
@@ -149,8 +149,8 @@ locals {
   cluster_intranode_visibility_enabled     = local.cluster_output_intranode_visbility_enabled
   cluster_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled = local.cluster_output_vertical_pod_autoscaling_enabled
 
-  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == "" ? [] : [{
-    identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
+  cluster_workload_identity_config = var.identity_namespace == null ? [] : var.identity_namespace == "enabled" ? [{
+    identity_namespace = "${var.project_id}.svc.id.goog" }] : [{ identity_namespace = var.identity_namespace
   }]
   # /BETA features
 
diff --git a/modules/beta-public-cluster/variables.tf b/modules/beta-public-cluster/variables.tf
index 4732035bd..248fd0bf7 100644
--- a/modules/beta-public-cluster/variables.tf
+++ b/modules/beta-public-cluster/variables.tf
@@ -420,9 +420,9 @@ variable "enable_vertical_pod_autoscaling" {
 }
 
 variable "identity_namespace" {
-  description = "Workload Identity namespace"
+  description = "Workload Identity namespace. (Default value of `enabled` automatically sets project based namespace `project_id..svc.id.goog`)"
   type        = string
-  default     = ""
+  default     = "enabled"
 }
 
 variable "authenticator_security_group" {
@@ -440,5 +440,5 @@ variable "release_channel" {
 variable "enable_shielded_nodes" {
   type        = bool
   description = "Enable Shielded Nodes features on all nodes in this cluster"
-  default     = false
+  default     = true
 }