Monitoring access review activity is a crucial aspect of the SC-300 Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator exam. As an aspiring or current access administrator, understanding how to monitor access review activity will equip you with the skills to efficiently manage and secure access to your organization’s resources. This is carried out through Microsoft Identity platform, specifically Azure AD access reviews, which evaluates users’ access to certain roles and memberships.
Assuming you are presently managing your organization’s Microsoft cloud services and you have initiated several access reviews. The next critical step is monitoring the review activities. What is the status? How many reviewers have responded? Are there any recommendations? The answers to these questions provide important information you should frequently monitor.
Understanding Azure AD Access Reviews
Azure AD Access Reviews is a Microsoft tool that enables organizations to efficiently manage group memberships, access to enterprise applications, and role assignments. Reviewers can be the resource owners, members of the resource, or other selected individuals.
After initiating an access review, you can monitor the progress, track responses, apply the results to ensure only entitled identities have access. This helps to limit the risk associated with excess permissions.
Monitor Access Review Activity
Monitoring access review activities can be accomplished through the Azure portal. Here’s how to do it:
- Sign in to the Azure portal.
- In the left-hand navigation pane, select ‘Azure Active Directory’, then ‘Identity Governance’. Under ‘Access reviews’, select ‘Reviews’ to get an overview of all the access reviews.
- Click on a specific review’s name to get a detailed view of the progress.
This detailed view will show details like:
- Status: Indicates whether the review is Active, Applied, or Starting.
- Start and end date: Display the period the review is set to run.
- Progress: A percentage representation of completion. This is calculated based on the number of reviewers who have responded.
- Results: Gives a numerical breakdown of the responses: Deny, Approve, or Not Reviewed.
Apply Results
After progressing with the review and getting enough responses, make a decision based on the results. In case some users were denied access, you can remove their access right from this page.
Example of Working Scenario with Access Review
Let’s assume an organization with several group resources, including a Marketing team, IT team, Finance team. To ensure efficiency and security, the IT administrator starts an access review involving group owners.
The review reveals that 80% of the IT team members truly need the given access. The other 20% either moved to other departments or do not require the access anymore.
Applying these results improves the secure usage of resources and revokes excess permissions, reducing risk factors.
Properly monitoring access review activity contributes to better management of user identities and data protection. This is a crucial area of focus for the SC-300 Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator exam. By consistently practicing the art of managing access review, you will ultimately have more control and better security over your Microsoft identities.
Practice Test
True or False: Monitor access review activity is a task performed by Identity and Access Administrators in Microsoft.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: The role of Microsoft Identity and Access Administrators includes monitoring access review activities, including the monitoring and responding to access reviews.
What is the purpose of Access Reviews in Microsoft 365?
- a. To limit access to company data
- b. To provide an audit of access rights
- c. To facilitate system performance checks
- d. To identify redundant applications
Answer: b. To provide an audit of access rights
Explanation: The purpose of Access Reviews in Microsoft 365 is to provide a way for administrators to audit and review user access rights, ensuring the principle of least privilege is followed.
In Microsoft, who primarily performs Access Reviews?
- a. System Administrators
- b. Identity and Access Administrators
- c. Network Admins
- d. All of the above
Answer: b. Identity and Access Administrators
Explanation: The responsibility of performing Access Reviews primarily falls under the role of Identity and Access Administrators.
What can occur if access review is not performed periodically?
- a. Users may accrue excessive permissions over time
- b. The system may encounter performance issues
- c. There will be a decrease in cloud storage capability
- d. The system will become more secure
Answer: a. Users may accrue excessive permissions over time
Explanation: Without periodic access review, users can accumulate more permissions over time than necessary, which can present a security risk.
True or False: Access Reviews are only focused on a user’s access to system data.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: While access to system data is a major component, Access Reviews also include other access privileges like administrative roles, application access, and group memberships.
You can use Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) access reviews to review users’ access to what?
- a. Azure AD roles
- b. Azure AD resources
- c. Azure AD groups
- d. All of the above
Answer: d. All of the above
Explanation: Azure AD access reviews can be used to review users’ access to Azure AD roles, resources, and groups.
True or False: Azure AD access reviews can be set to automatically apply results at the end of a review period.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: Access reviews can be configured to automatically apply the review’s results when the review period ends, thus decreasing the workload for administrators.
In Azure AD, what determines a user’s continued access needs?
- a. User’s department
- b. Access usage data
- c. Time in the current role
- d. No. of users in a group
Answer: b. Access usage data
Explanation: In Azure AD, a user’s continued access needs are determined by access usage data, which shows whether an access right is being used or not.
True or False: After the Access Review is performed, no follow-up actions are necessary.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Post review, different actions may be required, such as revoking unnecessary access rights or re-certifying valid access rights.
Who can initiate an access review in Azure AD?
- a. Global Administrators
- b. User Administrators
- c. Compliance Administrators
- d. All of the above
Answer: d. All of the above
Explanation: Access review can be initiated by a variety of roles including Global Administrators, User Administrators, and Compliance Administrators.
True or False: During an access review, administrators have the ability to decide who the reviewers are.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: Administrators can choose the reviewers during an access review. This can be the resource owner, designated users, or self-review by the user.
Which of the following is important to perform after an access review?
- a. Reassign all roles
- b. Uninstall all unused programs
- c. Apply the recommendations provided by the review
- d. Increase system memory
Answer: c. Apply the recommendations provided by the review
Explanation: After an access review, it is crucial to apply the recommendations provided to ensure appropriate access rights are in place and maintained.
Interview Questions
What is Monitor Access Review Activity in the context of Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator?
Monitor Access Review Activity involves verifying and checking records of all operations associated with access reviews within an organization’s IT infrastructure. This includes activities related to identity management and granting, changing, and revoking access rights.
What is the main purpose of monitoring access review activity for the SC-300 Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator?
The main purpose of monitoring access review activity is to ensure that only authorized users have access to certain resources. It helps in tracking changes, detecting anomalous activity, and identifying any potential security threats or risks.
How does a Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator initialize an Access Review?
To initialize an Access Review, the administrator navigates to the Azure Active Directory, selects “Identity Governance” and then “Access reviews”. The administrator can then establish a new Access Review by selecting ‘New Access Review’.
What are some of the key details an administrator must set when initiating an access review?
When initiating an access review, administrators need to set key details like the name of the review, the start and end dates, the users and resources under review, and who will perform the review.
How does the Azure portal help in monitoring Access Review Activity?
The Azure portal provides a comprehensive dashboard where admins can monitor access review activities. They can view the status of ongoing and completed reviews, response breakdowns, and filter reviews based on their needs.
Which Azure service provides access review functionality for Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator?
The access review functionality for Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator is provided by Azure Active Directory (Azure AD).
Which users’ access can be monitored and reviewed using Access Review?
The access of all users in the organization, including administrators, employees, guests, and external partners, can be monitored and reviewed using Access Review.
What is the functionality of overprovisioned access in Access Reviews?
The overprovisioned access functionality in Access Reviews allows administrators to review users who have excessive access rights. This helps in minimizing the risk of security breaches.
What is the role of an Access Reviewer in Access Review process?
The role of the Access Reviewer is to review the access privileges of users and make decisions on whether a user should continue to have certain access rights or not.
How does SC-300 Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator ensure the security of the Access Review process?
The SC-300 Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator ensures the security of the Access Review process by only allowing authorized reviewers to make decisions, requiring justification for any privilege changes, and maintaining comprehensive logs of all access review activities.
How often should an organization conduct Access Reviews?
The frequency of Access Reviews depends on the organization’s needs and the nature of its data. However, Microsoft recommends conducting Access Reviews quarterly or even more frequently in high-risk scenarios.
Do Microsoft Identity and Access Administrators need to manually review activity logs in the Azure portal?
While manual review is possible, Azure AD features automated anomaly detection and risk event alerts, significantly reducing the need for manual log review.
How can Access Review help with compliance requirements?
Access Review provides detailed reports and audit logs, which can serve as evidence of compliance with various regulatory standards.
Can you revert the decisions made during the Access Review?
Yes, you can revert the decisions made during an Access Review. However, changes are typically permanent unless manually reverted by an administrator via the Azure portal.
How does the SC-300 Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator handle temporary access?
Temporary access is handled through Direct assignments or Group assignments with an expiry date. The Azure AD provides functionality to grant temporary access with automatic revocation after a specified period.
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