Study guide for Exam SC-900: Microsoft Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals (2024)

  • Article

Purpose of this document

This study guide should help you understand what to expect on the examand includes a summary of the topics the exam might cover and links toadditional resources. The information and materials in this documentshould help you focus your studies as you prepare for the exam.

Useful linksDescription
Review the skills measured as of April 25, 2024This list represents the skills measured AFTER the date provided. Study this list if you plan to take the exam AFTER that date.
Review the skills measured prior to April 25, 2024Study this list of skills if you take your exam PRIOR to the date provided.
Change logYou can go directly to the change log if you want to see the changes that will be made on the date provided.
How to earn the certificationSome certifications only require passing one exam, while others require passing multiple exams.
Your Microsoft Learn profileConnecting your certification profile to Microsoft Learn allows you to schedule and renew exams and share and print certificates.
Exam scoring and score reportsA score of 700 or greater is required to pass.
Exam sandboxYou can explore the exam environment by visiting our exam sandbox.
Request accommodationsIf you use assistive devices, require extra time, or need modification to any part of the exam experience, you can request an accommodation.
Take a free Practice AssessmentTest your skills with practice questions to help you prepare for the exam.

Updates to the exam

Our exams are updated periodically to reflect skills that are requiredto perform a role. We have included two versions of the Skills Measuredobjectives depending on when you are taking the exam.

We always update the English language version of the exam first. Someexams are localized into other languages, and those are updatedapproximately eight weeks after the English version is updated. WhileMicrosoft makes every effort to update localized versions as noted,there may be times when the localized versions of an exam are notupdated on this schedule. Other available languages are listed in theSchedule Exam section of the Exam Details webpage. If the examisn't available in your preferred language, you can request anadditional 30 minutes to complete the exam.

Note

The bullets that follow each of the skills measured are intended toillustrate how we are assessing that skill. Related topics may becovered in the exam.

Note

Most questions cover features that are general availability (GA). Theexam may contain questions on Preview features if those features arecommonly used.

Skills measured as of April 25, 2024

Audience profile

This exam is targeted to you, if you’re looking to familiarize yourselfwith the fundamentals of security, compliance, and identity (SCI) acrosscloud-based and related Microsoft services.

If you have an interest in Microsoft SCI solutions, this exam is foryou, whether you’re a:

  • Business stakeholder

  • New or existing IT professional

  • Student

You should be familiar with Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 and wantto understand how Microsoft SCI solutions can span across these solutionareas to provide a holistic and end-to-end solution.

Skills at a glance

  • Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity (10–15%)

  • Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Entra (25–30%)

  • Describe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutions (35–40%)

  • Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutions (20–25%)

Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity (10–15%)

Describe security and compliance concepts

  • Describe the shared responsibility model

  • Describe defense-in-depth

  • Describe the Zero Trust model

  • Describe encryption and hashing

  • Describe Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) concepts

Define identity concepts

  • Define identity as the primary security perimeter

  • Define authentication

  • Define authorization

  • Describe identity providers

  • Describe the concept of directory services and Active Directory

  • Describe the concept of federation

Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Entra (25–30%)

Describe function and identity types of Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe types of identities

  • Describe hybrid identity

Describe authentication capabilities of Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe the authentication methods

  • Describe multi-factor authentication (MFA)

  • Describe password protection and management capabilities

Describe access management capabilities of Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe Conditional Access

  • Describe Microsoft Entra roles and role-based access control (RBAC)

Describe identity protection and governance capabilities of Microsoft Entra

Describe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutions (35–40%)

Describe core infrastructure security services in Azure

  • Describe Azure distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) Protection

  • Describe Azure Firewall

  • Describe Web Application Firewall (WAF)

  • Describe network segmentation with Azure virtual networks

  • Describe network security groups (NSGs)

  • Describe Azure Bastion

  • Describe Azure Key Vault

Describe security management capabilities of Azure

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Cloud

  • Describe Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)

  • Describe how security policies and initiatives improve the cloudsecurity posture

  • Describe enhanced security features provided by cloud workloadprotection

Describe capabilities of Microsoft Sentinel

  • Define the concepts of security information and event management(SIEM) and security orchestration automated response (SOAR)

  • Describe threat detection and mitigation capabilities in MicrosoftSentinel

Describe threat protection with Microsoft Defender XDR

  • Describe Microsoft Defender XDR services

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Office 365

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Identity

  • Describe Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management

  • Describe Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence (Defender TI)

  • Describe the Microsoft Defender portal

Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutions (20–25%)

Describe Microsoft Service Trust Portal and privacy principles

  • Describe the Service Trust Portal offerings

  • Describe the privacy principles of Microsoft

  • Describe Microsoft Priva

Describe compliance management capabilities of Microsoft Purview

  • Describe the Microsoft Purview compliance portal

  • Describe Compliance Manager

  • Describe the uses and benefits of compliance score

Describe information protection, data lifecycle management, and data governance capabilities of Microsoft Purview

  • Describe the data classification capabilities

  • Describe the benefits of Content explorer and Activity explorer

  • Describe sensitivity labels and sensitivity label policies

  • Describe data loss prevention (DLP)

  • Describe records management

  • Describe retention policies, retention labels, and retention labelpolicies

  • Describe unified data governance solutions in Microsoft Purview

Describe insider risk, eDiscovery, and audit capabilities in Microsoft Purview

  • Describe insider risk management

  • Describe eDiscovery solutions in Microsoft Purview

  • Describe audit solutions in Microsoft Purview

Study resources

We recommend that you train and get hands-on experience before you takethe exam. We offer self-study options and classroom training as well aslinks to documentation, community sites, and videos.

Study resourcesLinks to learning and documentation
Get trainedChoose from self-paced learning paths and modules or take an instructor-led course
Find documentationMicrosoft security documentation
Azure security documentation
Microsoft Entra ID documentation
Microsoft Sentinel documentation
Microsoft 365 Defender documentation
Microsoft Purview
Get started with the Microsoft Service Trust Portal
Ask a question
Get community supportSecurity, compliance, and identity community hub
Follow Microsoft LearnMicrosoft Learn - Microsoft Tech Community
Find a videoExam Readiness Zone
Microsoft Learn Shows

Change log

Key to understanding the table: The topic groups (also known asfunctional groups) are in bold typeface followed by the objectiveswithin each group. The table is a comparison between the two versions ofthe exam skills measured and the third column describes the extent ofthe changes.

Skill area prior to April 25, 2024Skill area as of April 25, 2024Change
Audience profileNo change
Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identityDescribe the concepts of security, compliance, and identityNo change
Describe security and compliance conceptsDescribe security and compliance conceptsNo change
Define identity conceptsDefine identity conceptsNo change
Describe the capabilities of Microsoft EntraDescribe the capabilities of Microsoft EntraNo change
Describe function and identity types of Microsoft Entra IDDescribe function and identity types of Microsoft Entra IDNo change
Describe authentication capabilities of Microsoft Entra IDDescribe authentication capabilities of Microsoft Entra IDNo change
Describe access management capabilities of Microsoft Entra IDDescribe access management capabilities of Microsoft Entra IDNo change
Describe identity protection and governance capabilities of Microsoft EntraDescribe identity protection and governance capabilities of Microsoft EntraNo change
Describe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutionsDescribe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutionsNo change
Describe core infrastructure security services in AzureDescribe core infrastructure security services in AzureNo change
Describe security management capabilities of AzureDescribe security management capabilities of AzureNo change
Describe capabilities of Microsoft SentinelDescribe capabilities of Microsoft SentinelNo change
Describe threat protection with Microsoft 365 DefenderDescribe threat protection with Microsoft Defender XDRMinor
Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutionsDescribe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutionsNo change
Describe Microsoft Service Trust Portal and privacy principlesDescribe Microsoft Service Trust Portal and privacy principlesNo change
Describe compliance management capabilities of Microsoft PurviewDescribe compliance management capabilities of Microsoft PurviewNo change
Describe information protection, data lifecycle management, and data governance capabilities in Microsoft PurviewDescribe information protection, data lifecycle management, and data governance capabilities in Microsoft PurviewNo change
Describe insider risk, eDiscovery, and audit capabilities in Microsoft PurviewDescribe insider risk, eDiscovery, and audit capabilities in Microsoft PurviewNo change

Skills measured prior to April 25, 2024

Audience profile

This exam is targeted to you, if you’re looking to familiarize yourselfwith the fundamentals of security, compliance, and identity (SCI) acrosscloud-based and related Microsoft services.

If you have an interest in Microsoft SCI solutions, this exam is foryou, whether you’re a:

  • Business stakeholder

  • New or existing IT professional

  • Student

You should be familiar with Microsoft Azure and Microsoft 365 and wantto understand how Microsoft SCI solutions can span across these solutionareas to provide a holistic and end-to-end solution.

Skills at a glance

  • Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity (10–15%)

  • Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Entra (25–30%)

  • Describe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutions (35–40%)

  • Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutions (20–25%)

Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity (10–15%)

Describe security and compliance concepts

  • Describe the shared responsibility model

  • Describe defense-in-depth

  • Describe the Zero Trust model

  • Describe encryption and hashing

  • Describe Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) concepts

Define identity concepts

  • Define identity as the primary security perimeter

  • Define authentication

  • Define authorization

  • Describe identity providers

  • Describe the concept of directory services and Active Directory

  • Describe the concept of federation

Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Entra (25–30%)

Describe function and identity types of Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe types of identities

  • Describe hybrid identity

Describe authentication capabilities of Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe the authentication methods

  • Describe multi-factor authentication (MFA)

  • Describe password protection and management capabilities

Describe access management capabilities of Microsoft Entra ID

  • Describe Conditional Access

  • Describe Microsoft Entra roles and role-based access control (RBAC)

Describe identity protection and governance capabilities of Microsoft Entra

  • Describe Microsoft Entra ID Governance

  • Describe access reviews

  • Describe the capabilities of Microsoft Entra Privileged IdentityManagement

  • Describe Entra ID Protection

  • Describe Microsoft Entra Permissions Management

Describe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutions (35–40%)

Describe core infrastructure security services in Azure

  • Describe Azure distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) Protection

  • Describe Azure Firewall

  • Describe Web Application Firewall (WAF)

  • Describe network segmentation with Azure virtual networks

  • Describe network security groups (NSGs)

  • Describe Azure Bastion

  • Describe Azure Key Vault

Describe security management capabilities of Azure

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Cloud

  • Describe Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)

  • Describe how security policies and initiatives improve the cloudsecurity posture

  • Describe enhanced security features provided by cloud workloadprotection

Describe capabilities of Microsoft Sentinel

  • Define the concepts of security information and event management(SIEM) and security orchestration automated response (SOAR)

  • Describe threat detection and mitigation capabilities in MicrosoftSentinel

Describe threat protection with Microsoft 365 Defender

  • Describe Microsoft 365 Defender services

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Office 365

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

  • Describe Microsoft Defender for Identity

  • Describe Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management

  • Describe Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence (Defender TI)

  • Describe the Microsoft 365 Defender portal

Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutions (20–25%)

Describe Microsoft Service Trust Portal and privacy principles

  • Describe the Service Trust Portal offerings

  • Describe the privacy principles of Microsoft

  • Describe Microsoft Priva

Describe compliance management capabilities of Microsoft Purview

  • Describe the Microsoft Purview compliance portal

  • Describe Compliance Manager

  • Describe the uses and benefits of compliance score

Describe information protection, data lifecycle management, and data governance capabilities of Microsoft Purview

  • Describe the data classification capabilities

  • Describe the benefits of Content explorer and Activity explorer

  • Describe sensitivity labels and sensitivity label policies

  • Describe data loss prevention (DLP)

  • Describe records management

  • Describe retention policies, retention labels, and retention labelpolicies

  • Describe unified data governance solutions in Microsoft Purview

Describe insider risk, eDiscovery, and audit capabilities in Microsoft Purview

  • Describe insider risk management

  • Describe eDiscovery solutions in Microsoft Purview

  • Describe audit solutions in Microsoft Purview

Study guide for Exam SC-900: Microsoft Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals (2024)
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