Quick Answer
The answer is to create a custom anti-phishing policy with stricter settings. This is the correct approach because the default anti-phishing policy in Defender for Office 365 applies baseline protection, but it may not catch sophisticated or targeted phishing attempts that bypass its generic thresholds. A custom anti-phishing policy allows you to fine-tune impersonation protection, spoof intelligence, and advanced phishing thresholds specifically for your organization’s domains and users. On the SC-900 exam, this question tests your understanding of layered security controls—remember that phishing protection is distinct from spam filtering (which uses a spam confidence level) and from malware or attachment scanning. A common trap is confusing anti-phishing policies with anti-spam or anti-malware policies; the key distinction is that anti-phishing focuses on deceptive sender impersonation and domain spoofing. Memory tip: think “Phish = Person or Domain impersonation” to recall that custom policies target identity-based threats, not just message content.
This SC-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe the capabilities of microsoft security solutions. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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.
Your organization uses Microsoft Defender for Office 365. Users report receiving phishing emails that bypassed the default anti-phishing policy. What should you do to improve protection?
Create a custom anti-phishing policy.
Custom policies can include impersonation protection and advanced settings.
Enable Safe Attachments.
Why wrong: Safe Attachments scans attachments, not phishing content.
Configure anti-malware policy.
Why wrong: Anti-malware is for malware, not phishing.
Increase the spam confidence level (SCL) threshold.
Why wrong: SCL is for spam filtering, not anti-phishing.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Create a custom anti-phishing policy.
Correct: Create a custom anti-phishing policy with stricter settings. Option A: Increase spam confidence level is for spam, not phishing. Option C: Enable safe attachments is for attachment scanning. Option D: Configure anti-malware policy is for malware.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Create a custom anti-phishing policy.
Why this is correct
Custom policies can include impersonation protection and advanced settings.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Enable Safe Attachments.
Why it's wrong here
Safe Attachments scans attachments, not phishing content.
Configure anti-malware policy.
Why it's wrong here
Anti-malware is for malware, not phishing.
Increase the spam confidence level (SCL) threshold.
Why it's wrong here
SCL is for spam filtering, not anti-phishing.
Common exam traps
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
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
Identify which SC-900 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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FAQ
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..
The correct answer is: Create a custom anti-phishing policy. — Correct: Create a custom anti-phishing policy with stricter settings. Option A: Increase spam confidence level is for spam, not phishing. Option C: Enable safe attachments is for attachment scanning. Option D: Configure anti-malware policy is for malware.
Identify which SC-900 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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
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. Your organization uses Microsoft Defender for Office 365. A user reports receiving a phishing email that bypassed the default filters. You need to create a custom mail flow rule to block similar emails based on specific keywords in the subject line. Which tool should you use?
mediumWhy C: Exchange admin center (EAC) allows creating mail flow rules (transport rules) based on conditions like subject keywords. Option B is correct. Option A (Security & Compliance Center) includes policies but not mail flow rules. Option C (Defender for Cloud Apps) is for cloud apps. Option D (Microsoft Entra admin center) is for identity.
Variation 2. Your organization uses Microsoft Defender for Office 365. A user reports receiving a suspicious email that appears to be from their CEO asking for a wire transfer. The email passed through the spam filter. What additional protection should be enabled to detect such attacks?
mediumWhy D: Impersonation protection in Microsoft Defender for Office 365 specifically detects emails that impersonate executives or domains. It can be configured in anti-phishing policies. Option A is incorrect because safe attachments protect against malicious attachments, not impersonation. Option B is incorrect because safe links protect against malicious URLs. Option C is incorrect because anti-spam policies filter bulk mail, not targeted impersonation.
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Last reviewed: Jun 21, 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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