AZ-500 Manage identity and access Practice Question
A security engineer wants Defender for Cloud to detect threats against Azure SQL Database and SQL Server on Azure VMs. Which plan should be enabled?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse 'Defender for Storage' with protecting SQL databases because SQL databases store data, but Defender for Storage is specifically for blob, file, and data lake storage, not for relational database engines like SQL Server or Azure SQL Database.
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
✓
Defender for Databases or Defender for SQL coverage as presented in the portal
Defender for Databases (or the Defender for SQL coverage option in the portal) is the correct plan because it provides threat detection specifically for Azure SQL Database and SQL Server on Azure VMs. This plan monitors anomalous activities such as SQL injection, brute-force attacks, and unusual access patterns using Microsoft's threat intelligence and machine learning models. It is the only plan that directly covers both PaaS and IaaS SQL workloads as described.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Defender for Storage
Why it's wrong here
Defender for Storage delivers threat detection for Azure Blob Storage, Azure Files, and Azure Data Lake Storage, raising alerts on suspicious access patterns, anonymous connection attempts, and malware. However, it does not monitor database engines or SQL queries; it has no visibility into Azure SQL, SQL Managed Instance, or SQL Server on Azure VMs. Therefore, if the goal is to detect threats against a database/SQL workload, enabling Defender for Storage alone misses the target.
- ✓
Defender for Databases or Defender for SQL coverage as presented in the portal
Why this is correct
Enabling Defender for Databases or Defender for SQL coverage in the Defender for Cloud portal activates SQL Advanced Threat Protection for supported engines such as Azure SQL Database, SQL Managed Instance, Azure Synapse dedicated SQL pools, and SQL Server on Azure VMs. This control analyzes database audit logs and query activity in real time to detect SQL injection, anomalous access, and brute-force attempts. It is the direct and correct mechanism for database threat detection in Defender for Cloud.
- ✗
Defender for App Service only
Why it's wrong here
Defender for App Service only is scoped to threats against Azure App Service web applications, including file disclosure, code injection, and reconnaissance patterns on app endpoints. It does not inspect SQL queries, database audit logs, or authentication attempts on the database engine. Choosing it alone would leave database-layer threats unmonitored, so it cannot satisfy a requirement centered on database/SQL threat detection.
- ✗
Defender External Attack Surface Management
Why it's wrong here
Defender External Attack Surface Management (EASM) continuously discovers and maps an organization's external web properties, IPs, and domains to identify exposed assets and unpatched vulnerabilities, but it is more asset discovery/attack-surface assessment than active threat detection. It does not ingest SQL audit logs or analyze authentication/query anomalies for database workloads. Hence it cannot fulfill a database threat-detection requirement within Defender for Cloud.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This AZ-500 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Microsoft certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the AZ-500 exam.