Microsoft Purview DLP Policy: Automatically Encrypting Emails with PII
Your organization needs to ensure that emails containing personally identifiable information (PII) like passport numbers are automatically encrypted before being sent externally. What should you configure in Microsoft Purview?
Quick Answer
A DLP policy with the Encrypt action is the answer because encryption here needs to be conditional and automatic — triggered specifically when PII like a passport number is detected in an outbound email, not applied blanket to every message leaving the organization. DLP is what supplies that condition: it scans outgoing mail for a matching sensitive information type, and when it finds one, the Encrypt action applies Microsoft 365 Message Encryption to that specific message before it leaves, without requiring the sender to remember to apply protection manually. This is a different mechanism from a sensitivity label carrying its own encryption, which a user (or an automatic labeling policy) applies to the document or email itself as a persistent property of that content — DLP's Encrypt action instead reacts to content matching a rule at the point of send, making it well suited to scenarios phrased around automatically catching a specific data type in transit rather than classifying and protecting a file as a matter of course. When a requirement specifically ties encryption to detecting a named category of sensitive data in outbound communication, DLP with an Encrypt action is the mechanism being tested.
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often confuse retention labels (which manage lifecycle) with sensitivity labels (which can apply encryption), but the question specifically requires automatic encryption triggered by content detection, which is a DLP action, not a label-based action.
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
✓
A DLP policy with the 'Encrypt' action
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policies in Microsoft Purview can automatically detect emails containing sensitive information types (e.g., passport numbers) and apply the 'Encrypt' action to enforce encryption before the email is sent externally. This leverages Microsoft 365 Message Encryption (OME) to protect the data in transit.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
A retention label that encrypts the email
Why it's wrong here
Retention labels do not encrypt content; they manage retention.
- ✓
A DLP policy with the 'Encrypt' action
Why this is correct
DLP policies can automatically apply encryption to emails containing sensitive information.
- ✗
A communication compliance policy
Why it's wrong here
Communication compliance policies monitor for policy violations but do not encrypt.
- ✗
An information barrier policy
Why it's wrong here
Information barriers block communication between groups but do not encrypt.
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Microsoft Entra ID
Key term
Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 is a subscription-based cloud service from Microsoft that combines productivity tools like Office apps with security, device management, and online storage.
Key term
Microsoft Purview
Microsoft Purview is a unified data governance and compliance service that helps organizations discover, manage, and protect their data across on-premises, cloud, and hybrid environments.
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Same concept, more angles
3 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. Refer to the exhibit. A Microsoft Purview DLP policy is configured as shown. What will happen when a user tries to email an external recipient a document containing a credit card number?
medium- A.The email will be sent but the attachment will be removed
- ✓ B.The email will be blocked and the user will receive a notification
- C.The email will be delivered and the admin will be alerted
- D.The email will be sent and the event will be logged for audit
Why B: The DLP policy is configured with the action 'Block' and the user notification is enabled. When a user attempts to email a document containing a credit card number to an external recipient, the policy blocks the email from being sent and displays a notification to the user explaining the policy violation. This is the default behavior for a 'Block' action with user notification in Microsoft Purview DLP.
Variation 2. An organization needs to prevent users from sharing files containing trade secrets with external parties via email. The solution must allow internal sharing. Which Microsoft Purview capability should be configured?
medium- A.Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance
- ✓ B.Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention policies
- C.Microsoft Purview Data Lifecycle Management
- D.Microsoft Purview Sensitivity Labels with encryption
Why B: Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention (DLP) policies are designed to detect and block the sharing of sensitive information—such as trade secrets—via email or other channels, while still allowing internal sharing. DLP can inspect email content and attachments for sensitive data types and apply actions like blocking external sends, making it the correct choice for this requirement.
Variation 3. Your organization needs to create a policy that prevents users from sharing credit card numbers in emails. Which Microsoft Purview solution should you configure?
easy- A.Communication Compliance
- B.Retention policy
- C.eDiscovery
- ✓ D.Data loss prevention (DLP) policy
Why D: Data loss prevention (DLP) policies in Microsoft Purview are specifically designed to identify, monitor, and automatically protect sensitive information—such as credit card numbers—across Exchange Online, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams. By configuring a DLP policy with a credit card number sensitive info type, the organization can block users from sending emails containing those patterns, either by preventing the email from being sent or by triggering a policy tip. This directly addresses the requirement to prevent sharing of credit card numbers in emails.
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.