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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.
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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, 2025
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 (WAF)
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 industrial control systems (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 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
Evaluate an access review management solution
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 Microsoft Security 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 for Microsoft Services, 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 365 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 Key Vault 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
The table below summarizes the changes between the current and previous version of the skills measured. The functional groups are in bold typeface followed by the objectives within each group. The table is a comparison between the previous and current version of the exam skills measured and the third column describes the extent of the changes.
| Skill area prior to July 22, 2025 | Skill area as of July 22, 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities | Design solutions that align with security best practices and priorities | No change |
| 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 | No change |
| Design solutions for securing privileged access | Design solutions for securing privileged access | Major |