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. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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.
Your company uses GitHub and wants to implement a compliance framework that requires signed commits for all repositories. Developers use various IDEs and Git clients. What is the best way to enforce signed commits across the organization?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "best"
Why it matters: Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Enable 'Require signed commits' in the branch protection rules for the default branch.
Option C is correct because GitHub allows repository administrators to enable 'Require signed commits' in branch protection rules. Option A is incorrect because it is not enforceable; commits can be unsigned. Option B is incorrect because it only encourages, not enforces. Option D is incorrect because it does not enforce signing.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Set the repository to 'Require pull request reviews before merging' and rely on reviewers to check commit signatures.
Why it's wrong here
Reviewers may not check signatures.
✗
Ask developers to configure GPG keys and sign commits manually.
Why it's wrong here
This is not enforceable.
✓
Enable 'Require signed commits' in the branch protection rules for the default branch.
Why this is correct
This enforces signed commits on the branch.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "best" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
✗
Use a GitHub Action that fails if commits are unsigned.
Why it's wrong here
Actions run after push; they cannot block the push.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this AZ-400 question in full detail.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related AZ-400 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Develop a security and compliance plan — This question tests Develop a security and compliance plan — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Enable 'Require signed commits' in the branch protection rules for the default branch. — Option C is correct because GitHub allows repository administrators to enable 'Require signed commits' in branch protection rules. Option A is incorrect because it is not enforceable; commits can be unsigned. Option B is incorrect because it only encourages, not enforces. Option D is incorrect because it does not enforce signing.
What should I do if I get this AZ-400 question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related AZ-400 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "best". Signals that multiple options may be partially correct. Choose the option that most directly solves the exact problem described, not the one that sounds most complete.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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