The answer is Microsoft Entra ID Protection (P2) and Microsoft Sentinel. Entra ID Protection uses machine learning to detect risky sign-ins and user anomalies, automatically blocking high-risk sign-ins, while Sentinel ingests those identity logs into a centralized SIEM dashboard for real-time investigation and retains audit logs for up to two years to meet compliance. On the Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect exam, this scenario tests your ability to pair a cloud-native identity protection service with a SIEM for end-to-end threat detection and response, often appearing as a “choose the right combination” question. A common trap is selecting Defender for Identity, which is designed for on-premises Active Directory, not cloud-only identities, or Purview, which handles data governance rather than identity threats. Remember the pairing: Entra ID Protection handles the detection and automated blocking, Sentinel handles the centralized logging and investigation—think “Protect and Collect” to avoid mixing up services.
SC-100 Practice Question: Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities
This SC-100 practice question tests your understanding of design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities. 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.
You are a security architect for a global financial services company that uses Microsoft 365 E5 and Azure. The company has 50,000 users across 10 regions. The security team needs to detect and respond to identity-based threats in real-time, automate remediation for compromised accounts, and meet regulatory requirements for audit logging. The following requirements must be met: (1) Detect risky sign-ins and user anomalies, (2) Automatically block sign-ins when risk level is high, (3) Provide a centralized dashboard for security analysts to investigate incidents, (4) Retain logs for at least one year for compliance, (5) Minimize false positives by using machine learning. You have the following services available: Microsoft Entra ID P2, Microsoft Sentinel, Microsoft Defender for Identity, Microsoft Purview, and Microsoft Intune. Which combination of services should you use to meet all requirements?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "least"
Why it matters: You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
Clue: "minimum / minimize"
Why it matters: Asks for the least resource use — fewest addresses, smallest subnet, lowest overhead. Eliminate over-provisioned options even if they would technically work.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Microsoft Entra ID Protection (P2) and Microsoft Sentinel
Option D is correct because Microsoft Entra ID Protection (included in P2) detects risky sign-ins and user anomalies, and can automatically block high-risk sign-ins. Microsoft Sentinel ingests logs from Entra ID and other sources, provides a centralized SIEM dashboard for investigation, and retains logs for up to two years. Machine learning in both Entra ID Protection and Sentinel helps minimize false positives. Option A is wrong because Intune does not provide identity threat detection or centralized SIEM. Option B is wrong because Defender for Identity is for on-premises AD, not cloud-only identity. Option C is wrong because Purview is for data governance, not identity threat detection.
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.
✗
Microsoft Intune and Microsoft Defender for Cloud
Why it's wrong here
Intune is for device management; Defender for Cloud is for cloud workload protection, not identity.
✓
Microsoft Entra ID Protection (P2) and Microsoft Sentinel
Why this is correct
Entra ID Protection detects risks and blocks high-risk sign-ins; Sentinel provides centralized SIEM with long-term retention.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "least", "minimum / minimize" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
✗
Microsoft Defender for Identity and Microsoft Purview
Why it's wrong here
Defender for Identity is for on-premises AD; Purview is for data governance.
✗
Microsoft Purview and Microsoft Sentinel
Why it's wrong here
Purview does not detect identity threats; Sentinel alone lacks identity threat detection.
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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this SC-100 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 SC-100 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities — This question tests Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Microsoft Entra ID Protection (P2) and Microsoft Sentinel — Option D is correct because Microsoft Entra ID Protection (included in P2) detects risky sign-ins and user anomalies, and can automatically block high-risk sign-ins. Microsoft Sentinel ingests logs from Entra ID and other sources, provides a centralized SIEM dashboard for investigation, and retains logs for up to two years. Machine learning in both Entra ID Protection and Sentinel helps minimize false positives. Option A is wrong because Intune does not provide identity threat detection or centralized SIEM. Option B is wrong because Defender for Identity is for on-premises AD, not cloud-only identity. Option C is wrong because Purview is for data governance, not identity threat detection.
What should I do if I get this SC-100 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 SC-100 NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "least", "minimum / minimize". You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
About these practice questions
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These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. You are a security architect for a large organization that uses Microsoft Sentinel, Microsoft Defender XDR, and Microsoft Entra ID. The organization has a hybrid identity environment with on-premises Active Directory synchronized to Azure AD. The security team needs to detect and automatically respond to a specific attack pattern: an attacker compromises a user's credentials and then uses a new device to sign in to a critical application from an unusual location. The response should block the user's account for one hour and reset the user's password. You have already configured Microsoft Sentinel to receive sign-in logs from Azure AD. You need to design the detection and automated response. What should you do?
hard
A.Create a Microsoft Sentinel scheduled analytics rule that queries sign-in logs for unusual location and new device, then trigger a playbook to block the user and reset password.
B.Create a custom detection rule in Microsoft Defender XDR for the attack pattern and configure an automated action to block the user.
✓ C.Enable the Microsoft Entra ID Protection data connector in Microsoft Sentinel, create an analytics rule from the 'Sign-in from new device' template, and configure a playbook to block the user and reset password.
D.Enable Microsoft Entra ID Protection and configure a risk-based Conditional Access policy to block access and require password change.
Why C: Option C is correct because the Microsoft Entra ID Protection connector provides risk detections that can be ingested into Sentinel, and a playbook can be triggered to block the user and reset the password via the Azure AD API. Option A is incorrect because ID Protection can detect risky sign-ins, but the requirement is to use Sentinel for detection and response. Option B is incorrect because a scheduled query would be less efficient and not leverage ID Protection's risk assessments. Option D is incorrect because custom detection rules are less accurate than ID Protection's machine learning.
Last reviewed: Jun 21, 2026
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