SC-900 Shadow IT Discovery Practice Question
A company uses Microsoft 365 and many third-party SaaS apps like Salesforce and Box. The security team needs to discover which unsanctioned cloud apps employees are using (Shadow IT). They also want to get a risk score for each app and receive alerts when a high-risk app is used. Which Microsoft security solution should they use?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to confuse Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps with other Defender products (Endpoint or Identity) because they all share the 'Defender' branding, but only Cloud Apps provides CASB capabilities for Shadow IT discovery and app risk scoring.
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
✓
Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps
Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps (MDCA) is the correct solution because it is specifically designed for Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) functions, including Shadow IT discovery, risk scoring of cloud apps, and policy-based alerts. It integrates with Microsoft 365 and third-party SaaS apps via API connectors and log collectors to identify unsanctioned app usage and assign a risk score based on factors like compliance, security controls, and industry standards.
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 Defender for Endpoint
Why it's wrong here
Defender for Endpoint protects endpoints (computers, mobile devices) from threats, but does not discover Shadow IT cloud apps.
- ✗
Microsoft Defender for Identity
Why it's wrong here
Defender for Identity detects lateral movement and identity-based attacks in on-premises Active Directory, not cloud app discovery.
- ✓
Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps
Why this is correct
Defender for Cloud Apps includes Cloud Discovery, which identifies used apps, assigns risk scores, and alerts on high-risk app usage.
- ✗
Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager
Why it's wrong here
Compliance Manager helps manage compliance activities and provides a compliance score, but does not discover cloud app usage.
Go deeper
Related to this question
Learn chapter
Core Security Concepts
Key term
Risk score
A risk score is a numerical value that represents the level of risk associated with a given asset, threat, or vulnerability in a security context.
Key term
General Data Protection Regulation
A European Union law that gives individuals control over their personal data and sets strict rules for how organizations collect, store, and process that data.
About these practice questions
One of 1,250 original SC-900 practice questions on Courseiva, each with a full explanation and wrong-answer analysis — not exam dumps or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.