- A
Microsoft Defender for Office 365
Correct: Part of XDR.
- B
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Correct: Part of XDR.
- C
Microsoft Sentinel
Why wrong: Incorrect: SIEM, not part of XDR.
- D
Microsoft Intune
Why wrong: Incorrect: MDM.
- E
Microsoft Defender for Identity
Correct: Part of XDR.
Question 248 of 1,411
Microsoft Defender XDR Components
This SC-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe the capabilities of microsoft security solutions. 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 security team uses Microsoft Defender XDR to respond to incidents. Which THREE components are part of Microsoft Defender XDR?
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 Office 365
Microsoft Defender XDR is a unified extended detection and response platform that natively integrates signals from Microsoft Defender for Office 365 (email and collaboration protection), Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (endpoint detection and response), and Microsoft Defender for Identity (on-premises identity threat detection). These three components share telemetry and automate incident correlation across domains, which is the core purpose of Defender XDR.
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.
- ✓
Microsoft Defender for Office 365
Why this is correct
Correct: Part of XDR.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✓
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Why this is correct
Correct: Part of XDR.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Microsoft Sentinel
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: SIEM, not part of XDR.
- ✗
Microsoft Intune
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect: MDM.
- ✓
Microsoft Defender for Identity
Why this is correct
Correct: Part of XDR.
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 confuse Microsoft Sentinel (a SIEM) as part of Defender XDR, when in fact Sentinel is a separate Azure service that can consume Defender XDR alerts but is not a component of the XDR platform itself.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, Defender XDR uses a common data schema and the Microsoft Graph Security API to correlate alerts from Defender for Endpoint, Defender for Office 365, and Defender for Identity into a single incident timeline. For example, a phishing email detected by Defender for Office 365 can automatically trigger an investigation on the recipient's endpoint via Defender for Endpoint, and if the attacker attempts lateral movement using compromised credentials, Defender for Identity will surface that activity—all without manual intervention. This cross-product correlation is what distinguishes XDR from siloed security tools.
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.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SC-900 question test?
Describe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutions — This question tests Describe the capabilities of Microsoft security solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Microsoft Defender for Office 365 — Microsoft Defender XDR is a unified extended detection and response platform that natively integrates signals from Microsoft Defender for Office 365 (email and collaboration protection), Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (endpoint detection and response), and Microsoft Defender for Identity (on-premises identity threat detection). These three components share telemetry and automate incident correlation across domains, which is the core purpose of Defender XDR.
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 →
Same concept, more angles
1 more ways this is tested on SC-900
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. Which TWO features are part of Microsoft Defender XDR?
easy- ✓ A.Automated investigation and response
- B.Cloud app discovery
- C.Endpoint data loss prevention
- D.Identity Protection
- ✓ E.Incident management across workloads
Why A: Option A is correct because Automated investigation and response (AIR) is a core capability of Microsoft Defender XDR, enabling automatic response to threats across workloads. Option E is correct because Incident management across workloads allows security teams to manage and correlate incidents from multiple sources in a unified console within Defender XDR. Option B is incorrect because Cloud app discovery is a feature of Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps, not Defender XDR. Option C is incorrect because Endpoint data loss prevention (Endpoint DLP) is part of Microsoft Purview compliance solutions. Option D is incorrect because Identity Protection is a feature of Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD), not Defender XDR.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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