The answer is the eDiscovery Manager role with the Legal Hold sub-role. This is correct because initiating a legal hold in Microsoft Purview requires the specific 'Legal Hold' permission, which is a granular sub-role within the eDiscovery Manager role group. Communication Compliance roles, such as those used to detect insider trading alerts, only provide read and review capabilities for policy matches—they do not grant the authority to preserve mailbox content. On the SC-200 exam, this question tests your understanding of role-based access control boundaries across Purview solutions; a common trap is assuming that a Compliance Administrator or Communication Compliance analyst can place a hold, but only eDiscovery roles include the 'Legal Hold' permission. Remember, detection and preservation are separate functions: Communication Compliance detects, eDiscovery preserves. A useful memory tip is "Detect with Compliance, Hold with eDiscovery."
SC-200 Respond to security incidents Practice Question
This SC-200 practice question tests your understanding of respond to security incidents. 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.
An organization uses Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance to detect insider trading. An alert is generated for a user who sent a message containing sensitive financial data. The compliance officer needs to initiate a legal hold on the user's mailbox to preserve evidence. Which role must the officer have to perform this action?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
eDiscovery Manager (Legal Hold)
Legal hold requires the 'Legal Hold' role in Microsoft Purview (eDiscovery). Communication Compliance roles alone do not include hold capabilities. Exchange Online roles may not have cross-functional hold.
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.
✗
Communication Compliance admin
Why it's wrong here
This role manages policies but cannot place legal holds.
✗
Compliance Administrator (Global)
Why it's wrong here
Global compliance admin may have many permissions but not necessarily legal hold; it's recommended to use specific eDiscovery roles.
✓
eDiscovery Manager (Legal Hold)
Why this is correct
The eDiscovery Manager role with the 'Legal Hold' sub-role is required to place a mailbox on hold.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Exchange Online Mailbox Search role
Why it's wrong here
This role allows search but not hold.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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-200 question in full detail.
Identify which SC-200 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Respond to security incidents — This question tests Respond to security incidents — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: eDiscovery Manager (Legal Hold) — Legal hold requires the 'Legal Hold' role in Microsoft Purview (eDiscovery). Communication Compliance roles alone do not include hold capabilities. Exchange Online roles may not have cross-functional hold.
What should I do if I get this SC-200 question wrong?
Identify which SC-200 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
This SC-200 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 SC-200 exam.
Question Discussion
Share a tip, memory trick, or ask about the reasoning behind this question. Do not post real exam questions, leaked content, braindumps, or copyrighted exam material. Comments are moderated and may be removed without notice.
Sign in to join the discussion.