Data Loss Prevention (DLP) is a critical feature under the Microsoft 365 Compliance Center of Microsoft 365 Mobility and Security’s exam MS-101. DLP works to identify, monitor, and protect sensitive information across Microsoft 365. By using DLP, organizations can prevent sensitive data from getting into the wrong hands, whether by accidental actions or malicious intent.
DLP includes functionalities that alert system administrators about potential data leaks and other issues via alerts, events, and reports. Understanding how to review and respond to DLP alerts, events, and reports is critical to maintaining data security in your organization. In this article, we’ll cover these topics.
DLP Alerts
When a DLP policy is breached, an alert is triggered. These alerts are sent to administrators who can act accordingly to prevent sensitive data from being exposed. To view these alerts, you can navigate to the “Alerts” dashboard in the Microsoft 365 Compliance Center.
To respond effectively to DLP alerts, you need to assess the severity of the breach, the data involved, and the user who triggered it. You should have a defined procedure on how to handle different types of breaches. For high severity breaches, you might need to immediately revoke the user’s access to the data or network. For lesser ones, providing training to the employees might be enough.
DLP Events
Apart from alerts, DLP also logs events whenever there is a policy match, which means whenever sensitive data is shared, accessed or stored in an uncontrolled environment. These events can be viewed, sorted, and filtered on the ‘Data classification’ overview page in the Microsoft Compliance Center.
To respond to DLP events, first, you need to understand what the event is about – does it involve sensitive data being sent, accesses, or stored? Who is involved? Then define and execute actions accordingly. For example, suppose the event log shows that a user has been sending sensitive data outside the network frequently. You might need to revoke the user’s email privileges, investigate further, or provide training.
DLP Reports
Unlike alerts and events, which provide real-time information, DLP reports are more about providing a historical and analytical perspective regarding DLP policy matches within the organization. They can be found under the “Reports” section of the Microsoft Compliance Center.
DLP reports can help you identify recurring patterns, trends, and high-risk users. For instance, if the report shows a specific department has a high number of policy violations, you could investigate if there’s a requirement for more training in that department or if the DLP policies are too restrictive and inhibiting normal work.
Conclusion
In conclusion, understanding and effectively responding to DLP alerts, events, and reports are crucial for maintaining the security of sensitive information in your organization. Also, remember to regularly review and update your DLP policies based on the insights gathered from these alerts, events, and reports. Microsoft 365 Mobility and Security’s exam MS-101 will test your understanding and ability to use these tools effectively. Therefore, practicing and getting familiar with the Microsoft 365 management console and compliance center is key to success in this exam.
Practice Test
True or False: DLP stands for Data Loss Prevention.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: DLP stands for Data Loss Prevention, which refers to strategies that ensure end-users do not send sensitive data outside the corporate network.
Multiple Choice: Which of the following can trigger DLP alerts?
- a) Unauthorized data access
- b) Sharing sensitive information
- c) Changes in data location
- d) All of the above
Answer: d) All of the above
Explanation: DLP alerts can be triggered by a variety of actions such as unauthorized data access, sharing sensitive information, and changes in data location.
Multiple Choice: What does MS-101 Microsoft 365 Mobility and Security cover?
- a) Managing mobile devices
- b) Managing security metrics
- c) Managing DLP alerts
- d) All of the above
Answer: d) All of the above
Explanation: The MS-101 Microsoft 365 Mobility and Security exam covers how to manage mobile devices, security metrics, and DLP alerts.
True or False: DLP events relate to detected instances where sensitive information might be shared.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: DLP events are because of detected instances where sensitive information might be shared, such as sending confidential information through email.
Multiple Choice: What should you do upon receiving a DLP alert?
- a) Ignore the alert
- b) Shut down the system
- c) Review and respond to the alert
- d) Disable DLP
Answer: c) Review and respond to the alert
Explanation: On receiving a DLP alert, it is essential to review the alert to understand its nature and respond appropriately to prevent potential data loss or leakage.
True or False: The only way to handle DLP events is to block them immediately.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: While blocking is an option, DLP events can also be handled through other means such as alerts, tips to users, or overriding the restriction with justification.
Multiple Choice: Why are DLP reports useful?
- a) Identifying patterns and trends
- b) Monitoring policy effectiveness
- c) Documenting incidents
- d) All the above
Answer: d) All the above
Explanation: DLP reports are useful for a variety of reasons including identifying patterns and trends, monitoring policy effectiveness, and documenting incidents.
True or False: You should respond to a DLP alert without reviewing it first.
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: It’s crucial to review DLP alerts before responding, as this helps to understand the nature and severity of the alert.
Multiple Choice: DLP policies are set at ______ level?
- a) Device
- b) Organization
- c) User
- d) Network
Answer: b) Organization
Explanation: DLP policies are often set at an organization level to ensure uniformity and compliance across all systems.
True or False: It is not possible to customize DLP alerts in Microsoft
- True
- False
Answer: False
Explanation: Microsoft 365 allows users to customize DLP alerts based on specific conditions and parameters.
Multiple Select: What type of information can be included in a DLP report?
- a) The number of matches with a rule
- b) Top sensitive information types
- c) Top rule match locations
- d) Top users with most rule matches
Answer: a) The number of matches with a rule, b) Top sensitive information types, c) Top rule match locations and d) Top users with most rule matches
Explanation: A DLP report can provide detailed insights about a variety of aspects related to data loss prevention, including the number of rule matches, top sensitive information types, top rule match locations, and top users with most rule matches.
True or False: DLP alerts, events, and reports are integral parts of data governance in Microsoft
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: DLP alerts, events, and reports are crucial to the management and protection of data within an organization using Microsoft
Multiple Choice: DLP policy tips can help:
- a) Alert users about potential data sharing violations
- b) Block content
- c) Override a policy tip
- d) All the above
Answer: d) All the above
Explanation: DLP policy tips are not just limited to alerting users, but they can also involve blocking of content or provide the option to override a policy tip while providing justification.
True or False: It is crucial to review DLP alerts, events, and reports on a regular basis.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Explanation: Regular review of DLP alerts, events, and reports is essential to maintain the data security of an organization operating on Microsoft
Multiple Choice: When a DLP event is triggered, the system should:
- a) Shut down immediately
- b) Erase all sensitive files
- c) Log the event and alert appropriate personnel
- d) Do nothing
Answer: c) Log the event and alert appropriate personnel
Explanation: When a DLP event is triggered, the system should log the event and alert the appropriate personnel who can review the event and respond accordingly.
Interview Questions
What is the first step in planning and implementing DLP for workloads in Microsoft 365?
The first step is to identify the sensitive information that needs protection.
What is the role of classifiers in the implementation of a DLP solution?
Classifiers are use to identify and categorize data in the system. They play the key role in determining what kind of sensitive information is present and needs protection.
How do you apply a DLP policy to a specific location in Microsoft 365?
You can apply a Microsoft 365 DLP policy to a specific location by going to the Microsoft 365 compliance center, then to Data loss prevention > Policy > Create a policy > Custom > Next. Here you can choose the locations where you want the policy to be applied.
What does a DLP policy do in terms of controlling data?
A DLP policy helps in identifying, monitoring, and automatically protecting sensitive information across Microsoft 365.
How can you test the impact of a DLP policy before fully enabling it?
You can utilize the Test mode in DLP policy. This allows you to understand the impact of the policy without enforcing any actions or block access.
What does incident management in DLP in Microsoft 365 involve?
Incident management involves reviewing and responding to DLP policy violation alerts, investigating possible breaches, and taking appropriate actions to remediate them.
How can you customize the user notifications that are generated when a DLP violation occurs?
User notifications can be customized in the Microsoft 365 compliance center under the policy settings for a specific DLP policy.
What is the importance of setting up DLP policy tips?
Policy tips help in guiding the users in real-time about potential violation of the DLP policies. This can help in preventing sensitive data from being mistakenly shared.
Can you apply more than one DLP policy to the same location in Microsoft 365?
Yes, you can apply more than one DLP policy to the same location. If there is a conflict between two policies, the policy with the higher priority will override the lower one.
Where can you view the DLP reports in Microsoft 365?
DLP reports can be viewed in the Microsoft 365 compliance center under the “Reports” section.
In a DLP policy, what is a false positive and how can you handle it?
A false positive refers to a situation where DLP policy flags content as sensitive incorrectly. You can handle it by fine-tuning the DLP policy and adjust its sensitivity level.
What is considered sensitive information as per Microsoft DLP?
Any data that is confidential to an organization or legally covered such as credit card numbers, social security numbers or protected health information is considered sensitive by Microsoft.
Which Microsoft 365 services support DLP policies?
Services like Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, and Microsoft Teams support DLP policies.
How can you exclude a false positive from a DLP policy alert?
False positives can be excluded from DLP alerts by refining the conditions of the DLP policy from the Microsoft 365 compliance center.
What is the role of sensitivity labels in DLP solutions of Microsoft 365?
Sensitivity labels in Microsoft 365 allows for the classification and protection of sensitive data based on content. When integrated with DLP, these labels help to enforce the policies and prevent data loss.
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