Guide to Microsoft Security Certifications Part 3

Identity is the New Edge... Make sure it's Sharp!

With Part 1 and Part 2 under your belt, hopefully you're feeling like a Security juggernaut, if you are not then this one will definitely help you feel like you've got the chops! As you've probably noticed by now, Cloud Security has many different models it loves to subscribe to, Zero Trust, MITRE, but most importantly is Defense in Depth. Why do I mention the Defense in Depth model, well as we know in the Cloud world, physical security is no longer our concern as customers. That responsibility has shifted over to the Cloud Service Provider (Microsoft in our case) and so now we must focus on the next layer, Identity & Access.

Identity and Access is at the heart of securing any environment in the cloud, whether you want to create resources, deploy applications, enable access to SaaS, etc. Identity is the core mechanism, and if you've consumed news in any fashion over the last decade then you know breaches of major enterprises have occurred because of this being done incorrectly.

So, how can you add a key skill to your area of expertise within cloud to showcase you know how to properly secure cloud environments??

Identity and Access Administrator Associate

Like you, I recognized that as someone who spends an enormous amount of time in the Microsoft Cloud platform, that showcasing I had the knowledge to correctly secure environments for clients was critical. It wasn't just about having the tools to protect Azure, or Microsoft 365, but ensuring the right people had access to what they needed and ensuring people could correctly request access to apps or data or services needed to perform their job roles.

To prepare for the Identity and Access Administrator Associate exam, you should make sure that you are familiar with the requirements of the exam. Microsoft recently changed them objectives and they go into effect February 1st, 2023.

SC-300 Exam Guide:

Study Materials

With those?requirements being updated, it is important to ensure that the material you are using is with the latest updates. Now, most instructors will likely publish updates to their existing courses at some point after these changes have been made live, but I would not expect that to happen right away.

Dwayne Natwick,CRISC,CISM,CISA CISSP,CCSP,CGRC,CSSLP, MVP has a great SC-300 Exam Study Guide that you can look to leverage like I did.

Beyond that, I took advantage of the Microsoft Learn content available to you by visiting the exam page:

Exam SC-300: Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator - Certifications | Microsoft Learn

Pete Zerger, vCISO, CISSP just released a fantastic Exam Prep course on LinkedIn Learning that I also encourage you to use:

About the SC-300 exam (linkedin.com)

Take the Exam

Now, once you have completed your studies, it's time to head on over to the Microsoft SC-300 Exam page and sign up for the exam. You'll need to ensure that your Microsoft Learn profile is up to date, and then you'll be redirected to Pearson Vue to book that exam. As with the other Microsoft exams, you can either choose to take this from the comfort?of your own home or head into an authorized testing center, however I have noticed that some centers have closed post pandemic, so personally i chose to take it at home. Important to consider that you have a dedicated space that is quiet, free from distractions and you follow the guidelines outlined by Pearson Vue for testing.

After the exam is over

To ensure that you have passed the exam, you will have had to achieve the usual score of 700 out of 1000, which is a weighted score based on all the questions in the exam.

If you have achieved this score, congratulations on passing the exam and adding this certification to your Microsoft Security toolbelt. You can successfully showcase you are a trusted engineer who can confidently implement proper Identity and Access controls, ensure users are setup correctly, have access to the right resources and that your Azure AD tenant is secure.

If you did not achieve the 700-passing score, pay attention to that score report that was generated for you. This report identifies the areas of improvement that you should focus on and go back to some of the study materials that I mentioned in this article. Reach out to myself or other Microsoft MVPs/mentors and let's see what we can do to help you.

What's Next?

Two paths really exist here, and it's really up to you decide what makes the most sense for you and your goals. The Microsoft Identity Protection Administrator Associate exam is an option, for those wanting to add data security skills to their skills. The Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect Expert exam is another path Cloud professionals can look to, if they want to really showcase their expertise across Microsoft Security and they can correctly architect cloud security across cloud environments.

Whichever path you choose, both add great skillsets to your cloud expertise and can greatly enhance your standing as a Cloud Security professional. Good luck with your cloud security journey and let me know if there is anything I can do to help.