Question 375 of 1,000

Secure compute, storage, and databases →mediumMultiple ChoiceObjective-mapped

AZ-500 Secure compute, storage, and databases Practice Question

This AZ-500 practice question tests your understanding of secure compute, storage, and databases. 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.

A company stores sensitive customer data in an Azure Storage account. The security policy requires that all data be encrypted at rest using a customer-managed key (CMK) stored in Azure Key Vault. They also need the ability to disable the key in case of a security breach and have the data become inaccessible immediately. Which feature should they enable on the storage account to achieve this?

Clue words in this question

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

Clue: "immediately / without restart"
Why it matters: Time or reboot constraint — the correct answer must take effect right away without requiring a reboot or reload.

Question 1mediummultiple choice

Full question →

A
Enable Azure Storage encryption with customer-managed keys (CMK)
CMK allows you to manage the key used for encryption in your own Key Vault. You can disable or delete the key to revoke access to the data, though there is a short delay.
B
Use service-managed keys (SSE) with platform-managed keys
Why wrong: Service-managed keys do not give you control over the encryption key, so you cannot revoke access on demand.
C
Enable Azure Disk Encryption on VMs that access the storage account
Why wrong: Azure Disk Encryption encrypts the OS and data disks of VMs, not the storage account data. It does not protect blob data at rest.
D
Configure Azure Information Protection for the storage account
Why wrong: Azure Information Protection classifies and protects documents and emails, not storage account encryption. It is not used for storage-level encryption.

Full breakdown with real-world context →

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

✓

Enable Azure Storage encryption with customer-managed keys (CMK)

Option A is correct because enabling Azure Storage encryption with customer-managed keys (CMK) allows the customer to use their own key stored in Azure Key Vault for encrypting the storage account data at rest. The key can be disabled or revoked in Key Vault, which immediately renders the data inaccessible because Azure Storage uses the key to wrap the data encryption key; without access to the CMK, decryption cannot occur.

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.

✓
Enable Azure Storage encryption with customer-managed keys (CMK)
Why this is correct
CMK allows you to manage the key used for encryption in your own Key Vault. You can disable or delete the key to revoke access to the data, though there is a short delay.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "immediately / without restart" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Use service-managed keys (SSE) with platform-managed keys
Why it's wrong here
Service-managed keys do not give you control over the encryption key, so you cannot revoke access on demand.
✗
Enable Azure Disk Encryption on VMs that access the storage account
Why it's wrong here
Azure Disk Encryption encrypts the OS and data disks of VMs, not the storage account data. It does not protect blob data at rest.
✗
Configure Azure Information Protection for the storage account
Why it's wrong here
Azure Information Protection classifies and protects documents and emails, not storage account encryption. It is not used for storage-level encryption.

Common exam traps

Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword

The trap here is that candidates often confuse Azure Disk Encryption (which encrypts VM disks) with storage account encryption, or assume that platform-managed keys (SSE) provide the same revocation capability as customer-managed keys.

Detailed technical explanation

How to think about this question

Under the hood, Azure Storage encryption with CMK uses envelope encryption: a data encryption key (DEK) is encrypted by a key encryption key (KEK) stored in Azure Key Vault. When the CMK is disabled or revoked, Azure Storage cannot unwrap the DEK, making the data immediately inaccessible. This mechanism ensures that the customer retains full control over key lifecycle, including rotation, disabling, and deletion, which is critical for compliance with standards like GDPR or PCI DSS.

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-500 question test?

Secure compute, storage, and databases — This question tests Secure compute, storage, and databases — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..

What is the correct answer to this question?

The correct answer is: Enable Azure Storage encryption with customer-managed keys (CMK) — Option A is correct because enabling Azure Storage encryption with customer-managed keys (CMK) allows the customer to use their own key stored in Azure Key Vault for encrypting the storage account data at rest. The key can be disabled or revoked in Key Vault, which immediately renders the data inaccessible because Azure Storage uses the key to wrap the data encryption key; without access to the CMK, decryption cannot occur.

What should I do if I get this AZ-500 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: "immediately / without restart". Time or reboot constraint — the correct answer must take effect right away without requiring a reboot or reload.

What is the key concept behind this question?

Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.

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