The correct answer includes Network Security Groups (NSGs) to filter traffic to and from the VMs, as this directly implements network segmentation—a core pillar of defense in depth for Azure virtual machines. NSGs act as a stateful firewall at the subnet or NIC level, allowing you to define rules that restrict inbound and outbound traffic based on source, destination, and port, thereby reducing the attack surface. On the Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect exam, this concept tests your understanding of layered security controls rather than relying on a single solution; a common trap is choosing only encryption or identity controls while ignoring network filtering. Remember that defense in depth requires overlapping layers—network, compute, data, and identity—so NSGs cover the network layer, while Azure Disk Encryption (ADE) protects data at rest using BitLocker or DM-Crypt with keys in Azure Key Vault. A useful memory tip: think of NSGs as the bouncer at the door, and ADE as the locked safe inside the room.
SC-100 Practice Question: Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities
This SC-100 practice question tests your understanding of design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities. Match the stated requirement to the specific cloud service, access model, or configuration option — many options are valid in isolation but not for this scenario. 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.
Your organization wants to implement a defense-in-depth strategy for Azure virtual machines. Which THREE of the following should you include?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Azure Disk Encryption for OS and data disks
Azure Disk Encryption (ADE) uses BitLocker for Windows and DM-Crypt for Linux to encrypt OS and data disks at rest, protecting against unauthorized access to the physical disk. This is a foundational layer of defense-in-depth, ensuring that if an attacker gains access to the disk, the data remains unreadable without the encryption keys stored in Azure Key Vault.
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.
✓
Azure Disk Encryption for OS and data disks
Why this is correct
Encryption at rest protects data if disks are compromised.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Azure Firewall to inspect all traffic to the VMs
Why it's wrong here
Azure Firewall is a centralized firewall, but NSGs are more appropriate for VM-level defense.
✓
Microsoft Defender for Cloud with vulnerability assessment and just-in-time VM access
Why this is correct
Defender for Cloud provides threat detection and hardening recommendations.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Azure Bastion to provide secure RDP and SSH access
Why it's wrong here
Bastion is a secure access solution, not a defense-in-depth layer for the VM itself.
✓
Network security groups (NSGs) to filter traffic to and from the VMs
Why this is correct
NSGs provide network segmentation and filtering.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often include Azure Firewall or Azure Bastion as core defense-in-depth components, but the question asks for the three most essential layers; Azure Firewall is redundant with NSGs for basic VM traffic filtering, and Bastion is a secure access method, not a protective layer for the VM itself.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Defense-in-depth for Azure VMs relies on layered controls: disk encryption (ADE) protects data at rest, NSGs filter traffic at the subnet/NIC level using 5-tuple rules (source IP, destination IP, port, protocol, direction), and Microsoft Defender for Cloud provides continuous vulnerability assessment and just-in-time (JIT) VM access to reduce attack surface by opening ports only when needed. Under the hood, ADE leverages Azure Key Vault to store encryption keys, and Defender for Cloud's JIT uses Azure Policy to dynamically modify NSG rules, ensuring least-privilege access.
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 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.
Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities — This question tests Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Azure Disk Encryption for OS and data disks — Azure Disk Encryption (ADE) uses BitLocker for Windows and DM-Crypt for Linux to encrypt OS and data disks at rest, protecting against unauthorized access to the physical disk. This is a foundational layer of defense-in-depth, ensuring that if an attacker gains access to the disk, the data remains unreadable without the encryption keys stored in Azure Key Vault.
What should I do if I get this SC-100 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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