PL-300 Privacy Levels Practice Question
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit.
let
Source = Sql.Database("server01", "AdventureWorks"),
dbo_SalesOrderHeader = Source{[Schema="dbo",Item="SalesOrderHeader"]}[Data],
#"Filtered Rows" = Table.SelectRows(dbo_SalesOrderHeader, each Date.Year([OrderDate]) = 2024),
#"Grouped Rows" = Table.Group(#"Filtered Rows", {"CustomerID"}, {{"TotalSales", each List.Sum([SubTotal]), type number}}),
#"Sorted Rows" = Table.Sort(#"Grouped Rows", {{["TotalSales"], Order.Descending}})
in
#"Sorted Rows"Refer to the exhibit. The Power Query M code connects to a SQL Server database and performs data transformation. However, the query is failing with a privacy level error. What is the most likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap is that candidates often think a privacy level error requires inconsistent settings on a single source or credentials issues, but the error always involves combining multiple sources. Even if only SQL Server is visible, the query may be implicitly referencing another source.
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 query combines data from SQL Server and another data source with incompatible privacy levels.
A privacy level error in Power Query occurs when combining data from multiple sources with incompatible privacy levels. The query connects to SQL Server and performs transformations, but if it also references another source (e.g., from a previous step or additional data) with a privacy level that conflicts with SQL Server's privacy level, the Power Query firewall blocks the query. In this scenario, the most likely cause is that the query combines SQL Server data with another data source (such as a CSV file or another database) that has a privacy level set to 'Private' while SQL Server is set to 'Organizational' or 'Public', causing the error. Option D correctly identifies this. Options A and B are incorrect because a single data source cannot cause a privacy level error, and inconsistent privacy levels across environments do not trigger the firewall on a single source.
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 SQL Server credentials are not correctly configured in the data source settings.
Why it's wrong here
Misconfigured SQL Server credentials would produce an authentication failure, such as 'Login failed for user' or an ODBC login timeout, not a privacy-level error. Privacy-level errors are unrelated to credential validation; they are raised during the query-folding and data-combination phase when Power Query checks whether sources can be merged under the current privacy settings. Therefore, this option points to a completely different class of data-source configuration issue.
- ✗
The privacy levels for the SQL Server data source are set inconsistently across the environment.
Why it's wrong here
Inconsistent privacy levels for the same SQL Server data source across different environments do not cause a privacy-level error within a single Power Query execution. Privacy level is a per-source, per-user property in Power BI Desktop, and the engine evaluates the combination of sources in the current session using those stored levels. The error requires at least two distinct sources being combined with incompatible settings, not a mismatch of settings for one source across machines or users.
- ✗
The query uses a CSV file from a local folder that has a privacy level set to 'Private'.
Why it's wrong here
The CSV file's 'Private' privacy level is a necessary contributing factor, but it is not sufficient on its own to trigger a privacy-level error. Power Query raises this error only at the point where data from the CSV is combined with another source, such as SQL Server, and the two sources' privacy levels are incompatible. If the CSV were used in isolation, no privacy fault would occur, so this option incorrectly identifies the CSV alone as the root cause.
- ✓
The query combines data from SQL Server and another data source with incompatible privacy levels.
Why this is correct
This is correct because Power Query's privacy-level engine prevents data from being combined across sources that have incompatible privacy levels, such as a 'Private' CSV file from a local folder and a SQL Server source with a different level. When the query attempts to fold or merge data from these two sources, the engine raises a privacy-level error unless levels are adjusted to allow the combination or a suitable firewall level is configured. The error is specifically triggered by the act of combining the sources, not by the nature of any single source.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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