Introduction

Welcome to MCE Microsoft® Certified Expert Cybersecurity Architect Study Guide: Exam SC-100. This book offers a firm grounding for Microsoft's Exam SC-100. This introduction provides a basic overview of this book and the Microsoft Certified Architect SC-100 exam.

What Is Azure?

The Microsoft Azure cloud platform consists of more than 200 IT products and services designed to help you bring new IT solutions to life to solve today's challenges and create the future. You can build, run, and manage applications across multiple clouds, on-premises, and at the edge, with the tools and frameworks of your choice.

Organizations worldwide can become more digitally connected with Microsoft Azure, and cybersecurity strategy can transform their security. In a cloud environment, security as a service provides security strategies for data, applications, identity, and infrastructure to customers. The Cybersecurity Architect role continues to evolve in the cloud landscape as professionals secure the workloads to the cloud, manage hybrid security, secure remote workers, and support strategic scenario-led digital transformations.

About the SC-100 Certification Exam

The SC-100 certification exam tests your knowledge and understanding of the Microsoft Azure Cybersecurity Architect role. Specifically, the certification aims to validate your expertise in securing Azure workloads, including data, applications, access management, identity, infrastructure compliance, governance risk compliance, and privacy access to Azure services.

You will be tested on your capabilities to translate requirements into secure, scalable, and reliable cybersecurity design and deployment of cybersecurity solutions.

The exam tests your deep understanding of all aspects of enterprise architecture and the Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect's role to design and evolve a cybersecurity strategy that protects a company's mission and business processes. In addition to GRC technical strategies, your skills as a Cybersecurity Architect in creating Zero Trust security strategies for data, applications, access management, identity, and infrastructure, as well as designing Zero Trust architectures and evaluating security operations strategies, will be validated in this SC-100 exam.

Why Become a Certified Microsoft Azure Cybersecurity Architect?

Would you like to demonstrate your Microsoft Azure cybersecurity skills and experience to your company or clients by planning, designing, deploying, and managing their Azure cybersecurity solutions?

Because Microsoft certification is a globally recognized and industry-endorsed proof of mastering real-world skills, those with such a certification are known to be more productive and efficient. Microsoft certifications differentiate you by proving your broad skills and experience with current Microsoft network solutions.

A Microsoft certification exam is a great way to demonstrate your expertise and build your résumé. You can validate your product knowledge and experience by taking Microsoft certification SC-100 exams.

During and following the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020, many testing organizations changed their on-site testing procedures, some even offering remote exam proctoring. In light of this, be sure you check with Microsoft's website and the provider where you plan to take the exam prior to registration and again prior to exam day for the latest, up-to-the-minute changes in exam site procedures.

Preparing to Become a Certified Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect

To plan and implement an organization's cybersecurity strategy, a Cybersecurity Architect collaborates continuously with IT security, privacy, and other organizational roles.

This exam requires advanced knowledge and experience in several security engineering areas, including identity and access, platform protection, security operations, and data and application security. Additionally, you should be familiar with hybrid and cloud implementations.

To earn the Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect Expert certification, candidates must pass one of the following exams: SC-200, SC-300, AZ-500, or MS-500. Microsoft strongly recommends that you do this before taking the SC-100 exam.

The best preparation for the exam is through studying and hands-on practice. Studying this book will give you the necessary information and skills to prepare for the Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect Certification SC-100.

We recommend spending 10 weeks or so of intensive study for the MCE SC-100 exam. The following are some recommendations to maximize your learning time. You can modify this list as necessary based on your own learning experiences.

• Get hands-on experience with the Azure Portal daily, read articles about Azure, and learn Azure cybersecurity terminology.
• Take one or two evenings to read each chapter in this book and work through its review materials.
• Answer all the review questions and take the practice exam provided on the book's website.
• Review the Microsoft Azure SC-100 skills measured on Microsoft's page for this exam.

  learn.microsoft.com/en-us/certifications/exams/sc-100

  • You'll find a "skills measured" section on every exam and Microsoft certification page. The following are the primary skills that will be assessed for the SC-100 exam. A detailed outline can be downloaded from the Microsoft site for this exam.
    • Design a Zero Trust strategy and architecture.
    • Evaluate governance risk compliance technical strategies and security operations strategies.
    • Design security for infrastructure.
    • Design a strategy for data and applications.
    • Recommend security best practices and priorities.
• Use the flashcards included with the online study tools for this book to reinforce your understanding of concepts.
• Take free hands-on learning courses on Microsoft Learn.

  learn.microsoft.com/en-gb/certifications/exams/sc-100

• Read the Microsoft Azure documentation.

  docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/?product=popular

How to Become a Certified Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect

You can register for your exam from the Microsoft certification Exam SC-100 details page once you are ready.

learn.microsoft.com/en-gb/certifications/exams/sc-100

On the certification detail pages, you'll find the choice to register in the "Schedule Exam" section.

Azure security engineers with previous Azure certifications in security, compliance, and identity will be tested for this exam. Security engineers should have advanced expertise and knowledge in various security engineering fields, including identity and access, platform protection, security operations, data security, and applications. A hybrid or cloud-based implementation should also be familiar to them. Those just starting should take SC-900: Microsoft Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals instead.

You can take the exam online or at a local testing center, so you need to choose a test center or use online proctoring. There are advantages to each. Local test centers provide a secure environment. By taking your exam online, you can take it almost anywhere at any time. However, a reliable connection and a secure browser are required. When you take your test online, your system will first be checked to be sure it meets the requirements.

Who Should Buy This Book

Anybody who wants to pass the Microsoft SC-100 exam will benefit from reading this book. If you're new to Azure cybersecurity, this book covers the material you will need to learn, starting from the basics. It continues by providing the knowledge you need to be proficient enough to pass the SC-100 exams. If you're already familiar with Azure cybersecurity, this book can serve as a review and a refresher course for the information you might not be entirely aware of. Reading this book will help you pass the Microsoft SC-100 exams in either case.

This book is written assuming that you know at least a little about Azure and have essential cybersecurity experience and knowledge in a wide range of security engineering areas, including identity and access, platform protection, security operations, securing data, and securing applications. If you have experience with hybrid and cloud implementations, it will be a great value to add to kick-start your journey with SC-100.

How This Book Is Organized

This book covers four areas: Zero Trust, governance risk compliance (GRC), security operations (SecOps), and data and applications. In addition, students will be able to design and architect solutions using Zero Trust principles and specify security requirements for cloud infrastructure in multiple service models (SaaS, PaaS, IaaS).

This book consists of nine chapters plus supplementary information. The chapters are organized as follows:

• Chapter 1: Define and Implement an Overall Security Strategy and Architecture    This chapter covers the basics of cloud and cybersecurity, getting started with Zero Trust, designing integration points in an architecture, designing security needs based on business goals, decoding security needs' technical abilities, designing security for a resiliency approach, identifying the security risks associated with hybrid and multi-tenant environments, and...