The answer is integrity. Hashing algorithms like SHA-256 protect integrity by generating a unique, fixed-size hash value that serves as a digital fingerprint for data. If even a single bit of the file is altered during transmission, the hash changes completely, immediately revealing tampering. This is distinct from confidentiality, which encryption protects by preventing unauthorized reading. On the SC-900 exam, this concept often appears in scenarios about software downloads or file verification, where the trap is confusing integrity with confidentiality. Remember that hashing detects changes but does not hide content, while encryption hides content but does not detect changes. A simple memory tip: hash for “has it changed?” (integrity), encrypt for “keep it secret” (confidentiality).
SC-900 Practice Question: Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity
This SC-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity. 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.
A company uses a hashing algorithm to verify that a downloaded software file has not been tampered with during transmission. This practice primarily protects which security principle?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Integrity
Hashing algorithms, such as SHA-256, produce a fixed-size hash value that acts as a digital fingerprint of the file. By comparing the hash of the downloaded file with the hash provided by the publisher, any change to the file—even a single bit—results in a completely different hash, immediately detecting tampering. This directly protects the integrity of the data by ensuring it has not been altered during transmission.
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.
✗
Confidentiality
Why it's wrong here
Confidentiality focuses on preventing unauthorized access to data, not on detecting tampering.
✓
Integrity
Why this is correct
Integrity ensures data is accurate and unaltered. Hashing verifies that the file has not been modified.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Availability
Why it's wrong here
Availability ensures systems and data are accessible when needed, which is not the primary goal of hashing.
✗
Non-repudiation
Why it's wrong here
Non-repudiation provides proof of origin or delivery, often via digital signatures, not just hashing.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse hashing with encryption and select 'Confidentiality' (Option A), not realizing that hashing is a one-way function that detects changes but does not hide the data.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Hashing is a one-way function; given a hash, it is computationally infeasible to reverse it to find the original data. In practice, file integrity verification often uses a checksum like SHA-256, and the publisher distributes the hash over a secure channel (e.g., HTTPS) to prevent a man-in-the-middle from replacing both the file and its hash. A subtle behavior is that hashing does not protect against tampering if the attacker can also modify the published hash value, which is why digital signatures are used for stronger integrity and authentication.
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
An e-commerce site experiences heavy traffic on Black Friday and near-zero traffic during off-peak weeks. Rather than provisioning permanent large VMs, the team uses auto-scaling groups that add capacity automatically under load and reduce it overnight. Questions like this test whether you understand elasticity, availability zones, and cloud compute scaling patterns.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this SC-900 question in full detail.
Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity — This question tests Describe the concepts of security, compliance, and identity — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Integrity — Hashing algorithms, such as SHA-256, produce a fixed-size hash value that acts as a digital fingerprint of the file. By comparing the hash of the downloaded file with the hash provided by the publisher, any change to the file—even a single bit—results in a completely different hash, immediately detecting tampering. This directly protects the integrity of the data by ensuring it has not been altered during transmission.
What should I do if I get this SC-900 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.
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 →
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. A security analyst is explaining the core principles of information security to a new team member. Which principle ensures that data is not modified by unauthorized parties?
easy
A.Confidentiality
✓ B.Integrity
C.Availability
D.Non-repudiation
Why B: The principle of integrity ensures that data remains accurate and unaltered during storage, processing, or transmission, except by authorized entities. In the context of information security, integrity is specifically concerned with preventing unauthorized modification, deletion, or creation of data. This is often enforced through mechanisms such as hashing (e.g., SHA-256), digital signatures, and checksums (e.g., CRC32) that detect any tampering.
Variation 2. A security analyst downloads a software installer from a vendor's website. To ensure the file has not been tampered with during transmission, the analyst compares the SHA-256 hash of the downloaded file against the hash published on the vendor's official site. This practice primarily validates which security goal?
easy
A.Confidentiality
✓ B.Integrity
C.Availability
D.Authentication
Why B: Comparing the SHA-256 hash of the downloaded installer against the vendor's published hash verifies that the file has not been altered during transmission. This directly validates integrity, which ensures data remains unchanged from its original source. Hashing is a one-way cryptographic function; any change in the file, even a single bit, produces a completely different hash value, making tampering detectable.
Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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.
This SC-900 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-900 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.