Study guide for Exam SC-100: Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect

Purpose of this document

This study guide should help you understand what to expect on the exam and includes a summary of the topics the exam might cover and links to additional resources. The information and materials in this document should help you focus your studies as you prepare for the exam.

Useful links Description
Review the skills measured as of July 22, 2024 This list represents the skills measured AFTER the date provided. Study this list if you plan to take the exam AFTER that date.
Review the skills measured prior to July 22, 2024 Study this list of skills if you take your exam PRIOR to the date provided.
Change log You can go directly to the change log if you want to see the changes that will be made on the date provided.
How to earn the certification Some certifications only require passing one exam, while others require passing multiple exams.
Certification renewal Microsoft associate, expert, and specialty certifications expire annually. You can renew by passing a free online assessment on Microsoft Learn.
Your Microsoft Learn profile Connecting your certification profile to Microsoft Learn allows you to schedule and renew exams and share and print certificates.
Exam scoring and score reports A score of 700 or greater is required to pass.
Exam sandbox You can explore the exam environment by visiting our exam sandbox.
Request accommodations If you use assistive devices, require extra time, or need modification to any part of the exam experience, you can request an accommodation.
Take a free Practice Assessment Test your skills with practice questions to help you prepare for the exam.

Updates to the exam

Our exams are updated periodically to reflect skills that are required to perform a role. We have included two versions of the Skills Measured objectives depending on when you are taking the exam.

We always update the English language version of the exam first. Some exams are localized into other languages, and those are updated approximately eight weeks after the English version is updated. While Microsoft makes every effort to update localized versions as noted, there may be times when localized versions of an exam are not updated on this schedule. Other available languages are listed in the Schedule Exam section of the Exam Details webpage. If the exam isn't available in your preferred language, you can request an additional 30 minutes to complete the exam.

Note

The bullets that follow each of the skills measured are intended to illustrate how we are assessing that skill. Related topics may be covered in the exam.

Note

Most questions cover features that are general availability (GA). The exam may contain questions on Preview features if those features are commonly used.

Skills measured as of July 22, 2024

Audience profile

As a Microsoft cybersecurity architect, you translate a cybersecurity strategy into capabilities that protect the assets, business, and operations of an organization. You design, guide the implementation of, and maintain security solutions that follow Zero Trust principles and best practices, including security strategies for identity, devices, data, AI, applications, network, infrastructure, and DevOps. Plus, you design solutions for Governance and Risk Compliance (GRC), security operations, and security posture management.​

As a cybersecurity architect, you continuously collaborate with leaders and practitioners in security, privacy, engineering, and other roles across an organization to plan and implement a cybersecurity strategy that meets the business needs of an organization.​

As a candidate for this exam, you have experience implementing or administering solutions in the following areas: identity and access, platform protection, security operations, data and AI security, application security, and hybrid and multicloud infrastructures. You should have expert skills in at least one of those areas, and you should have experience designing security solutions that include Microsoft security technologies.

Skills at a glance

  • Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities (20–25%)

  • Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities (25–30%)

  • Design security solutions for infrastructure (25–30%)

  • Design security solutions for applications and data (20–25%)

Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities (20–25%)

Design a resiliency strategy for ransomware and other attacks based on Microsoft Security Best Practices

  • Design a security strategy to support business resiliency goals, including identifying and prioritizing threats to business-critical assets

  • Design solutions for business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR), including secure backup and restore for hybrid and multicloud environments

  • Design solutions for mitigating ransomware attacks, including prioritization of BCDR and privileged access

  • Evaluate solutions for security updates

Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cybersecurity Reference Architectures (MCRA) and Microsoft cloud security benchmark (MCSB)

  • Design solutions that align with best practices for cybersecurity capabilities and controls

  • Design solutions that align with best practices for protecting against insider, external, and supply chain attacks

  • Design solutions that align with best practices for Zero Trust security, including the Zero Trust Rapid Modernization Plan (RaMP)

Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework

  • Design a new or evaluate an existing strategy for security and governance based on the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF) for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework

  • Recommend solutions for security and governance based on the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework

  • Design solutions for implementing and governing security by using Azure landing zones

  • Design a DevSecOps process that aligns with best practices in the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF)

Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities (25–30%)

Design solutions for security operations

  • Design a solution for detection and response that includes extended detection and response (XDR) and security information and event management (SIEM)

  • Design a solution for centralized logging and auditing, including Microsoft Purview Audit

  • Design monitoring to support hybrid and multicloud environments

  • Design a solution for security orchestration automated response (SOAR), including Microsoft Sentinel and Microsoft Defender XDR

  • Design and evaluate security workflows, including incident response, threat hunting, and incident management

  • Design and evaluate threat detection coverage by using MITRE ATT&CK matrices, including Cloud, Enterprise, Mobile, and ICS

Design solutions for identity and access management

  • Design a solution for access to software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), infrastructure as a service (IaaS), hybrid/on-premises, and multicloud resources, including identity, networking, and application controls

  • Design a solution for Microsoft Entra ID, including hybrid and multi-cloud environments

  • Design a solution for external identities, including business-to-business (B2B), business-to-customer (B2C), and decentralized identity

  • Design a modern authentication and authorization strategy, including Conditional Access, continuous access evaluation, risk scoring, and protected actions

  • Validate the alignment of Conditional Access policies with a Zero Trust strategy

  • Specify requirements to harden Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS)

  • Design a solution to manage secrets, keys, and certificates

Design solutions for securing privileged access

  • Design a solution for assigning and delegating privileged roles by using the enterprise access model

  • Evaluate the security and governance of Microsoft Entra ID, including Microsoft Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM), entitlement management, and access reviews

  • Evaluate the security and governance of on-premises Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS), including resilience to common attacks

  • Design a solution for securing the administration of cloud tenants, including SaaS and multicloud infrastructure and platforms

  • Design a solution for cloud infrastructure entitlement management that includes Microsoft Entra Permissions Management

  • Evaluate an access review management solution that includes Microsoft Entra Permissions Management

  • Design a solution for Privileged Access Workstation (PAW), including remote access

Design solutions for regulatory compliance

  • Translate compliance requirements into security controls

  • Design a solution to address compliance requirements by using Microsoft Purview

  • Design a solution to address privacy requirements, including Microsoft Priva

  • Design Azure Policy solutions to address security and compliance requirements

  • Evaluate and validate alignment with regulatory standards and benchmarks by using Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Design security solutions for infrastructure (25–30%)

Design solutions for security posture management in hybrid and multicloud environments

  • Evaluate security posture by using Microsoft Defender for Cloud, including the Microsoft cloud security benchmark (MCSB)

  • Evaluate security posture by using Microsoft Secure Score

  • Design integrated security posture management solutions that include Microsoft Defender for Cloud in hybrid and multi-cloud environments

  • Select cloud workload protection solutions in Microsoft Defender for Cloud

  • Design a solution for integrating hybrid and multicloud environments by using Azure Arc

  • Design a solution for Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management (Defender EASM)

  • Specify requirements and priorities for a posture management process that uses Exposure Management attack paths, attack surface reduction, security insights, and initiatives

Specify requirements for securing server and client endpoints

  • Specify security requirements for servers, including multiple platforms and operating systems

  • Specify security requirements for mobile devices and clients, including endpoint protection, hardening, and configuration

  • Specify security requirements for IoT devices and embedded systems

  • Evaluate solutions for securing operational technology (OT) and industrial control systems (ICS) by using Microsoft Defender for IoT

  • Specify security baselines for server and client endpoints

  • Evaluate Windows Local Admin Password Solution (LAPS) solutions

Specify requirements for securing SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services

  • Specify security baselines for SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services

  • Specify security requirements for IoT workloads

  • Specify security requirements for web workloads

  • Specify security requirements for containers

  • Specify security requirements for container orchestration

  • Evaluate solutions that include Azure AI Services Security

Evaluate solutions for network security and Security Service Edge (SSE)

  • Evaluate network designs to align with security requirements and best practices

  • Evaluate solutions that use Microsoft Entra Internet Access as a secure web gateway

  • Evaluate solutions that use Microsoft Entra Internet Access to access Microsoft 365, including cross-tenant configurations

  • Evaluate solutions that use Microsoft Entra Private Access

Design security solutions for applications and data (20–25%)

Evaluate solutions for securing Microsoft 365

  • Evaluate security posture for productivity and collaboration workloads by using metrics, including Microsoft Secure Score

  • Evaluate solutions that include Microsoft Defender for Office and Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps

  • Evaluate device management solutions that include Microsoft Intune

  • Evaluate solutions for securing data in Microsoft 365 by using Microsoft Purview

  • Evaluate data security and compliance controls in Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 services

Design solutions for securing applications

  • Evaluate the security posture of existing application portfolios

  • Evaluate threats to business-critical applications by using threat modeling

  • Design and implement a full lifecycle strategy for application security

  • Design and implement standards and practices for securing the application development process

  • Map technologies to application security requirements

  • Design a solution for workload identity to authenticate and access Azure cloud resources

  • Design a solution for API management and security

  • Design solutions that secure applications by using Azure Web Application Firewall (WAF)

Design solutions for securing an organization's data

  • Evaluate solutions for data discovery and classification

  • Specify priorities for mitigating threats to data

  • Evaluate solutions for encryption of data at rest and in transit, including Azure KeyVault and infrastructure encryption

  • Design a security solution for data in Azure workloads, including Azure SQL, Azure Synapse Analytics, and Azure Cosmos DB

  • Design a security solution for data in Azure Storage

  • Design a security solution that includes Microsoft Defender for Storage and Microsoft Defender for Databases

Study resources

We recommend that you train and get hands-on experience before you take the exam. We offer self-study options and classroom training as well as links to documentation, community sites, and videos.

Study resources Links to learning and documentation
Get trained Choose from self-paced learning paths and modules or take an instructor-led course
Find documentation Microsoft security documentation
Microsoft Cybersecurity Reference Architectures
Microsoft Defender for Cloud documentation
Zero Trust Guidance Center
Governance, risk, and compliance in Azure
Ask a question Microsoft Q&A | Microsoft Docs
Get community support Security, compliance, and identity community hub
Follow Microsoft Learn Microsoft Learn - Microsoft Tech Community
Find a video Exam Readiness Zone
Browse other Microsoft Learn shows

Change log

Key to understanding the table: The topic groups (also known as functional groups) are in bold typeface followed by the objectives within each group. The table is a comparison between the two versions of the exam skills measured and the third column describes the extent of the changes.

Skill area prior to July 22, 2024 Skill area as of July 22, 2024 Change
Audience profile Major
Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities No change
Design a resiliency strategy for ransomware and other attacks based on Microsoft Security Best Practices Design a resiliency strategy for ransomware and other attacks based on Microsoft Security Best Practices Minor
Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cybersecurity Reference Architectures (MCRA) and Microsoft cloud security benchmark (MCSB) Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cybersecurity Reference Architectures (MCRA) and Microsoft cloud security benchmark (MCSB) Minor
Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework Minor
Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities % of the exam decreased
Design solutions for security operations Design solutions for security operations Minor
Design solutions for identity and access management Design solutions for identity and access management Minor
Design solutions for securing privileged access Design solutions for securing privileged access Major
Design solutions for regulatory compliance Design solutions for regulatory compliance Minor
Design security solutions for infrastructure Design security solutions for infrastructure No change
Design solutions for security posture management in hybrid and multicloud environments Design solutions for security posture management in hybrid and multicloud environments Major
Design solutions for securing server and client endpoints Specify requirements for securing server and client endpoints Minor
Specify requirements for securing SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services Specify requirements for securing SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services Minor
Evaluate solutions for network security and Security Service Edge (SSE) New
Design security solutions for applications and data Design security solutions for applications and data No change
Design solutions for securing Microsoft 365 Evaluate solutions for securing Microsoft 365 Major
Design solutions for securing applications Design solutions for securing applications Minor
Design solutions for securing an organization's data Design solutions for securing an organization's data Minor

Skills measured prior to July 22, 2024

Audience profile

As a Microsoft cybersecurity architect, you translate a cybersecurity strategy into capabilities that protect the assets, business, and operations of an organization. You design, guide the implementation of, and maintain security solutions that follow Zero Trust principles and best practices, including security strategies for:

  • Identity

  • Devices

  • Data

  • Applications

  • Network

  • Infrastructure

  • DevOps

Plus, you design solutions for:

  • Governance and Risk Compliance (GRC)

  • Security operations

  • Security posture management

As a cybersecurity architect, you continuously collaborate with leaders and practitioners in IT security, privacy, and other roles across an organization to plan and implement a cybersecurity strategy that meets the business needs of an organization.

As a candidate for this exam, you have experience implementing or administering solutions in the following areas:

  • Identity and access

  • Platform protection

  • Security operations

  • Data security

  • Application security

  • Hybrid and multicloud infrastructures

You should have expert skills in at least one of those areas, and you should have experience designing security solutions that include Microsoft security technologies.

Skills at a glance

  • Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities (20–25%)

  • Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities (30–35%)

  • Design security solutions for infrastructure (20–25%)

  • Design security solutions for applications and data (20–25%)

Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities (20–25%)

Design a resiliency strategy for ransomware and other attacks based on Microsoft Security Best Practices

  • Design a security strategy to support business resiliency goals, including identifying and prioritizing threats to business-critical assets

  • Design solutions that align with Microsoft ransomware best practices, including backup, restore, and privileged access

  • Design configurations for secure backup and restore by using Azure Backup for hybrid and multicloud environments

  • Design solutions for security updates

Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cybersecurity Reference Architectures (MCRA) and Microsoft cloud security benchmark (MCSB)

  • Design solutions that align with best practices for cybersecurity capabilities and controls

  • Design solutions that align with best practices for protecting against insider and external attacks

  • Design solutions that align with best practices for Zero Trust security, including the Zero Trust Rapid Modernization Plan (RaMP)

Design solutions that align with the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework

  • Design a new or evaluate an existing strategy for security and governance based on the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework (CAF) for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework

  • Recommend solutions for security and governance based on the Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure and the Microsoft Azure Well-Architected Framework

  • Design solutions for implementing and governing security by using Azure landing zones

  • Design a DevSecOps process

Design security operations, identity, and compliance capabilities (30–35%)

Design solutions for security operations

  • Develop security operations capabilities to support a hybrid or multicloud environment

  • Design a solution for centralized logging and auditing

  • Design a solution for security information and event management (SIEM), including Microsoft Sentinel

  • Design a solution for detection and response that includes extended detection and response (XDR)

  • Design a solution for security orchestration automated response (SOAR), including Microsoft Sentinel and Microsoft Defender XDR

  • Design and evaluate security workflows, including incident response, threat hunting, incident management, and threat intelligence

  • Design and evaluate threat detection coverage by using MITRE ATT&CK

Design solutions for identity and access management

  • Design a solution for access to software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), infrastructure as a service (IaaS), hybrid/on-premises, and multicloud resources, including identity, networking, and application controls

  • Design a solution for Microsoft Entra ID, including hybrid and multi-cloud environments

  • Design a solution for external identities, including business-to-business (B2B), business-to-customer (B2C), and decentralized identity

  • Design a modern authentication and authorization strategy, including Conditional Access, continuous access evaluation, threat intelligence integration, and risk scoring

  • Validate the alignment of Conditional Access policies with a Zero Trust strategy

  • Specify requirements to secure Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS)

  • Design a solution to manage secrets, keys, and certificates

Design solutions for securing privileged access

  • Design a solution for assigning and delegating privileged roles by using the enterprise access model

  • Design an identity governance solution, including Microsoft Entra Privileged Identity Management (PIM), privileged access management, entitlement management, and access reviews

  • Design a solution for securing the administration of cloud tenants, including SaaS and multicloud infrastructure and platforms

  • Design a solution for cloud infrastructure entitlement management that includes Microsoft Entra Permissions Management

  • Design a solution for Privileged Access Workstation (PAW) and bastion services

Design solutions for regulatory compliance

  • Translate compliance requirements into a security solution

  • Design a solution to address compliance requirements by using Microsoft Purview risk and compliance solutions

  • Design a solution to address privacy requirements, including Microsoft Priva

  • Design Azure Policy solutions to address security and compliance requirements

  • Evaluate infrastructure compliance by using Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Design security solutions for infrastructure (20–25%)

Design solutions for security posture management in hybrid and multicloud environments

  • Evaluate security posture by using the Microsoft cloud security benchmark (MCSB)

  • Evaluate security posture by using Microsoft Defender for Cloud

  • Evaluate security posture by using Microsoft Secure Score

  • Design integrated security posture management and workload protection solutions in hybrid and multi-cloud environments, including Microsoft Defender for Cloud

  • Design cloud workload protection solutions that use Microsoft Defender for Cloud, such as Microsoft Defender for Servers, Microsoft Defender for App Service, and Microsoft Defender for SQL

  • Design a solution for integrating hybrid and multicloud environments by using Azure Arc

  • Design a solution for Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management (Defender EASM)

Design solutions for securing server and client endpoints

  • Specify security requirements for servers, including multiple platforms and operating systems

  • Specify security requirements for mobile devices and clients, including endpoint protection, hardening, and configuration

  • Specify security requirements for IoT devices and embedded systems

  • Design a solution for securing operational technology (OT) and industrial control systems (ICS) by using Microsoft Defender for IoT

  • Specify security baselines for server and client endpoints

  • Design a solution for secure remote access, including Microsoft Entra Global Secure Access

Specify requirements for securing SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services

  • Specify security baselines for SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS services

  • Specify security requirements for IoT workloads

  • Specify security requirements for web workloads, including Azure App Service

  • Specify security requirements for containers

  • Specify security requirements for container orchestration

Design security solutions for applications and data (20–25%)

Design solutions for securing Microsoft 365

  • Evaluate security posture for productivity and collaboration workloads by using metrics, including Microsoft Secure Score and Microsoft Defender for Cloud secure score

  • Design a Microsoft Defender XDR solution

  • Design secure configurations and operational practices for Microsoft 365 workloads and data

Design solutions for securing applications

  • Evaluate the security posture of existing application portfolios

  • Evaluate threats to business-critical applications by using threat modeling

  • Design and implement a full lifecycle strategy for application security

  • Design and implement standards and practices for securing the application development process

  • Map technologies to application security requirements

  • Design a solution for workload identity to authenticate and access Azure cloud resources

  • Design a solution for API management and security

  • Design a solution for secure access to applications, including Azure Web Application Firewall (WAF) and Azure Front Door

Design solutions for securing an organization's data

  • Design a solution for data discovery and classification by using Microsoft Purview data governance solutions

  • Specify priorities for mitigating threats to data

  • Design a solution for protection of data at rest, data in motion, and data in use

  • Design a security solution for data in Azure workloads, including Azure SQL, Azure Synapse Analytics, and Azure Cosmos DB

  • Design a security solution for data in Azure Storage

  • Design a security solution that includes Microsoft Defender for Storage and Microsoft Defender for SQL