- A
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention (DLP) for on-premises
Why wrong: DLP can monitor and protect data, but it relies on labels applied by Information Protection and is not designed for automatic discovery and labeling of existing files.
- B
Microsoft Purview Information Protection scanner
Correct. The scanner discovers, classifies, and protects sensitive data on on-premises file servers by applying sensitivity labels and optionally encryption.
- C
Microsoft Purview Audit
Why wrong: Audit records user activities; it does not classify or protect files.
- D
Microsoft Purview eDiscovery
Why wrong: eDiscovery is used to identify, hold, and export data for legal cases, not for automatic classification and protection.
Question 165 of 1,411
SC-900 Practice Question: Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutions
This SC-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe the capabilities of microsoft compliance 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 company stores sensitive financial data on on-premises Windows Server file shares. The compliance team needs to automatically discover files containing credit card numbers, classify them by applying a sensitivity label, and optionally enforce protection actions like encryption. They want this solution to run on the on-premises file servers without needing to manually scan. Which Microsoft Purview solution should the compliance team deploy?
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 Purview Information Protection scanner
The Microsoft Purview Information Protection scanner is designed to run on on-premises Windows Server file shares to automatically discover, classify, and protect sensitive data. It uses content inspection to identify patterns like credit card numbers, applies sensitivity labels, and can enforce encryption without requiring manual scanning.
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 Purview Data Loss Prevention (DLP) for on-premises
Why it's wrong here
DLP can monitor and protect data, but it relies on labels applied by Information Protection and is not designed for automatic discovery and labeling of existing files.
When this WOULD be correct
A company needs to prevent accidental sharing of credit card numbers via email or network shares by blocking the transmission or alerting users. The compliance team wants to enforce protection actions like blocking or warning without requiring classification labels. In that scenario, deploying Microsoft Purview DLP for on-premises would be correct.
- ✓
Microsoft Purview Information Protection scanner
Why this is correct
Correct. The scanner discovers, classifies, and protects sensitive data on on-premises file servers by applying sensitivity labels and optionally encryption.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Microsoft Purview Audit
Why it's wrong here
Audit records user activities; it does not classify or protect files.
When this WOULD be correct
A compliance team needs to investigate a data breach by reviewing all user access and modification logs for sensitive files over the past 90 days. They require detailed audit records to identify suspicious activity.
- ✗
Microsoft Purview eDiscovery
Why it's wrong here
eDiscovery is used to identify, hold, and export data for legal cases, not for automatic classification and protection.
When this WOULD be correct
A legal team needs to search for and export emails and documents related to a lawsuit from Exchange Online and SharePoint Online. Deploying Microsoft Purview eDiscovery would allow them to identify, preserve, and export relevant data for litigation.
Option-by-option analysis
Why each answer is right or wrong
Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The SC-900 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.
✓Microsoft Purview Information Protection scannerCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
Correct. The scanner discovers, classifies, and protects sensitive data on on-premises file servers by applying sensitivity labels and optionally encryption.
✗Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention (DLP) for on-premisesWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention (DLP) for on-premises can detect sensitive data and enforce policies like blocking or warning, but it does not automatically classify files by applying sensitivity labels. The question specifically requires classification via sensitivity labels, which is a core function of the Information Protection scanner.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A company needs to prevent accidental sharing of credit card numbers via email or network shares by blocking the transmission or alerting users. The compliance team wants to enforce protection actions like blocking or warning without requiring classification labels. In that scenario, deploying Microsoft Purview DLP for on-premises would be correct.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse DLP's ability to detect sensitive data with the classification and labeling capabilities of Information Protection. They might think DLP can also apply labels, but DLP focuses on policy enforcement (block, warn) rather than automatic labeling.
✗Microsoft Purview AuditWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Microsoft Purview Audit is designed for logging and investigating user and admin activities, not for automatically discovering, classifying, or protecting sensitive data on file shares.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A compliance team needs to investigate a data breach by reviewing all user access and modification logs for sensitive files over the past 90 days. They require detailed audit records to identify suspicious activity.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse 'audit' with 'discovery' or think that auditing includes scanning for sensitive content, but Audit only records events, not content classification.
✗Microsoft Purview eDiscoveryWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Microsoft Purview eDiscovery is designed for searching and exporting content from Microsoft 365 and Exchange Online, not for automatically discovering and classifying sensitive data on on-premises Windows Server file shares.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
A legal team needs to search for and export emails and documents related to a lawsuit from Exchange Online and SharePoint Online. Deploying Microsoft Purview eDiscovery would allow them to identify, preserve, and export relevant data for litigation.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may confuse eDiscovery's search capabilities with the discovery of sensitive data for compliance, not realizing eDiscovery focuses on legal discovery rather than automated classification and labeling.
Analysis generated from the official SC-900blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is confusing Data Loss Prevention (DLP) for on-premises, which monitors data in motion, with the Information Protection scanner, which handles data at rest classification and labeling.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The Information Protection scanner runs as a service on the on-premises server, using the Microsoft Purview Information Protection client to inspect files via pattern matching (e.g., regex for credit card numbers) and apply labels defined in the Microsoft 365 compliance center. It supports incremental scanning and can be configured to automatically apply encryption via Azure Rights Management, ensuring data remains protected even if moved off-premises.
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 cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SC-900 question test?
Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutions — This question tests Describe the capabilities of Microsoft compliance solutions — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Microsoft Purview Information Protection scanner — The Microsoft Purview Information Protection scanner is designed to run on on-premises Windows Server file shares to automatically discover, classify, and protect sensitive data. It uses content inspection to identify patterns like credit card numbers, applies sensitivity labels, and can enforce encryption without requiring manual scanning.
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.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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.
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