MS-102 Manage compliance by using Microsoft Purview Practice Question
A compliance officer needs to ensure that any email sent from the organization that contains personally identifiable information (PII) such as social security numbers is automatically encrypted when the recipient is outside the organization. Which Microsoft Purview solution should the officer configure?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse the underlying encryption technology (OME) with the policy that triggers it, leading them to select OME configuration (Option C) instead of the DLP policy that actually detects PII and enforces the encryption action.
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
✓
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policy with encryption action
A Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policy in Microsoft Purview can be configured with an 'Encrypt email messages' action that automatically applies Office 365 Message Encryption (OME) to emails containing sensitive information types (e.g., Social Security Number) when sent to external recipients. This meets the compliance requirement for automatic encryption based on content detection, without requiring user intervention or manual label application.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
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Sensitivity labels with auto-labeling
Why it's wrong here
While sensitivity labels can encrypt emails and attachments, auto-labeling in Microsoft 365 is primarily designed to classify and protect documents at rest or emails during authoring in the Outlook client. At the transport layer, Exchange Online does not support automatic sensitivity label assignment based on content inspection the way DLP does; therefore, it would not trigger encryption for emails leaving the organization without manual user intervention.
- ✓
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policy with encryption action
Why this is correct
Microsoft Purview DLP policies are the correct solution because they operate on outbound email in transit within Exchange Online, scanning message body and attachments for sensitive data types. When a match occurs, the policy can automatically apply encryption as a protective action (via OME) and even show a policy tip or notify the sender, exactly meeting the requirement to ensure any email containing sensitive data is secured at send.
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Office 365 Message Encryption (OME) configuration
Why it's wrong here
Office 365 Message Encryption (OME) is purely the encryption engine that protects message confidentiality, but it lacks built-in content inspection or decision-making logic to determine when encryption should be applied. Configuring OME by itself only sets up encryption capabilities and policy templates; unless a separate DLP policy or Exchange transport rule triggers OME based on detected sensitive data, emails will not be automatically encrypted on send.
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Retention policy and labels
Why it's wrong here
Retention policies and labels govern data lifecycle actions such as preserving or permanently deleting content based on age or metadata, but they do not inspect email content at the moment of transmission. They lack the ability to apply encryption to outbound messages, so a compliance officer's requirement to automatically secure sensitive emails on send cannot be satisfied by these tools.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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