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Develop a security and compliance plan →hardMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

AZ-400 Develop a security and compliance plan Practice Question

This AZ-400 practice question tests your understanding of develop a security and compliance plan. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.

Exhibit

Refer to the exhibit.

{
  "properties": {
    "policyDefinitions": [
      {
        "policyDefinitionId": "/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyDefinitions/bfd4f8c3-4b5d-4a7d-8c9a-1e2f3a4b5c6d",
        "parameters": {
          "effect": {
            "value": "Deny"
          },
          "allowedLocations": {
            "value": ["eastus", "westus"]
          }
        }
      }
    ],
    "policySetDefinitionId": "/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policySetDefinitions/0a1b2c3d-4e5f-6a7b-8c9d-0e1f2a3b4c5d"
  },
  "id": "/subscriptions/sub123/resourceGroups/rg-devops/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyAssignments/assignment-dev",
  "type": "Microsoft.Authorization/policyAssignments",
  "name": "assignment-dev",
  "location": "eastus"
}

You are reviewing an Azure Policy assignment in a DevOps environment. The exhibit shows the policy assignment JSON. The policy set includes the built-in policy 'Allowed Locations' with effect Deny. During a pipeline deployment, a resource creation fails with a policy violation error. The resource being deployed is a storage account in the 'centralus' region. What is the most likely reason for the failure?

Clue words in this question

Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.

  • Clue: "most likely"

    Why it matters: Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.

Question 1hardmultiple choice
Full question →

Exhibit

Refer to the exhibit.

{
  "properties": {
    "policyDefinitions": [
      {
        "policyDefinitionId": "/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyDefinitions/bfd4f8c3-4b5d-4a7d-8c9a-1e2f3a4b5c6d",
        "parameters": {
          "effect": {
            "value": "Deny"
          },
          "allowedLocations": {
            "value": ["eastus", "westus"]
          }
        }
      }
    ],
    "policySetDefinitionId": "/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policySetDefinitions/0a1b2c3d-4e5f-6a7b-8c9d-0e1f2a3b4c5d"
  },
  "id": "/subscriptions/sub123/resourceGroups/rg-devops/providers/Microsoft.Authorization/policyAssignments/assignment-dev",
  "type": "Microsoft.Authorization/policyAssignments",
  "name": "assignment-dev",
  "location": "eastus"
}

Answer choices

Why each option matters

Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.

Correct answer & explanation

✓

The resource being deployed is in a region that is not allowed by the policy assignment parameters.

The policy assignment includes the built-in 'Allowed Locations' policy with the Deny effect. The resource being deployed (a storage account) is in the 'centralus' region, but the policy assignment parameters likely specify a list of allowed regions that does not include 'centralus'. Since the Deny effect prevents any non-compliant resource creation, the deployment fails with a policy violation error. This is the most direct and common cause of such failures in Azure Policy.

Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.

Answer analysis

Option-by-option breakdown

For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.

  • ✗

    The policy assignment is misconfigured because it does not specify a policy set definition.

    Why it's wrong here

    The assignment includes a policySetDefinitionId, so it is correctly configured.

  • ✓

    The resource being deployed is in a region that is not allowed by the policy assignment parameters.

    Why this is correct

    The allowedLocations parameter only includes eastus and westus, so centralus is denied.

    Clue confirmation

    The clue word "most likely" in the question point toward this answer.

    Related concept

    Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

  • ✗

    The resource group is located in a region that overrides the policy assignment.

    Why it's wrong here

    Resource group location does not override policy assignments.

  • ✗

    The policy set definition does not include the 'Allowed Locations' policy.

    Why it's wrong here

    The assignment includes the policy definition ID, confirming it is included.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates may assume the resource group's location influences policy evaluation, but Azure Policy evaluates each resource's location independently, and the resource group's location is irrelevant unless explicitly referenced in the policy rule.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

Azure Policy evaluates resources at deployment time using the 'deny' action for policies with the Deny effect. The 'Allowed Locations' policy uses the 'policyRule' with a 'notIn' condition against the 'location' property of the resource. If the resource's location is not in the allowed list specified in the parameters, the policy engine triggers a denial. This evaluation occurs before the resource is created, so the deployment fails immediately with a 403 Forbidden status and a policy violation message.

KKey Concepts to Remember

  • Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
  • Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
  • Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.

TExam Day Tips

  • Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
  • Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.

Key takeaway

Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.

Real-world example

How this comes up in practice

A media company stores terabytes of video archives that are accessed once a year for audit purposes. Moving these objects to a cold storage tier (Azure Archive, S3 Glacier, or Google Nearline) costs a fraction of hot storage. Questions like this test whether you understand storage tiers, access frequency tradeoffs, and retrieval latency requirements.

What to study next

Got this wrong? Here's your next step.

Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

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FAQ

Questions learners often ask

What does this AZ-400 question test?

Develop a security and compliance plan — This question tests Develop a security and compliance plan — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: The resource being deployed is in a region that is not allowed by the policy assignment parameters. — The policy assignment includes the built-in 'Allowed Locations' policy with the Deny effect. The resource being deployed (a storage account) is in the 'centralus' region, but the policy assignment parameters likely specify a list of allowed regions that does not include 'centralus'. Since the Deny effect prevents any non-compliant resource creation, the deployment fails with a policy violation error. This is the most direct and common cause of such failures in Azure Policy.

What should I do if I get this AZ-400 question wrong?

Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.

Are there clue words in this question I should notice?

Yes — watch for: "most likely". Probability qualifier — the question wants the most probable cause or outcome, not a guaranteed one. Eliminate low-probability options.

What is the key concept behind this question?

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026

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