SC-900 Study Guide 2026
Everything you need to pass the SC-900 exam in one place: the exam format, every topic to study, real practice questions with explanations, flashcards, and full-length practice tests. Free, no sign-up needed.
📋 SC-900 Exam Format at a Glance
📚 SC-900 Topics to Study (15)
✍️ Sample SC-900 Questions & Answers
1. Why is data classification important in information protection?
Data classification is the process of categorizing data based on its sensitivity, value, and regulatory requirements. This is crucial for information protection because it allows organizations to apply appropriate security controls and protection mechanisms tailored to each data type. By understanding the sensitivity of data, resources can be allocated effectively to protect the most critical information, preventing over- or under-protection.
2. Which of the following is a core guiding principle of the Zero Trust security model?
The Zero Trust model operates on three core principles: Verify explicitly, Use least privileged access, and Assume breach. The 'Assume breach' principle means that you operate as if an attacker is already inside your network, minimizing the potential 'blast radius' through segmentation and continuous monitoring.
3. Which of the following capabilities is a core function of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint?
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is an enterprise endpoint security platform that provides capabilities such as attack surface reduction, next-generation protection, and endpoint detection and response (EDR) to prevent, detect, investigate, and respond to advanced threats on devices.
4. When a sensitivity label configured with encryption is applied to a document, what ensures that the protection remains with the file even if it is moved to a USB drive or sent to an external partner?
Sensitivity labels embed the classification and protection policy as metadata within the file. This means the encryption and access rights are part of the file itself and travel with it, ensuring the protection is persistent regardless of its location. This is managed by the Azure Rights Management service.
5. What does the term ‘data masking’ refer to?
Data masking is a technique used to create a structurally similar but inauthentic version of sensitive data. It replaces real sensitive data with realistic, but fictionalized, data to protect privacy and security, especially in non-production environments like development, testing, or training. This allows applications to function normally without exposing actual sensitive information, ensuring compliance and reducing the risk of data breaches.
6. What is the purpose of encryption in security?
The primary purpose of encryption in security is to protect data confidentiality. By transforming data into an unreadable format, encryption ensures that even if unauthorized parties gain access, they cannot understand or use the information, making it accessible only to those with the correct decryption key.