Glossary
Adaptive Scope
A Microsoft Purview scoping mechanism that uses queries over Entra ID attributes to dynamically include users, mailboxes, or sites.
An adaptive scope in Microsoft Purview defines the targets of a policy — retention, sensitivity, communication compliance — by query, not by explicit list. The query runs against Entra ID user attributes, SharePoint site properties, or Microsoft 365 Group properties (department, country, jobTitle, custom attributes). Membership in the scope updates automatically as those attributes change. Contrast with static scopes, which list targets explicitly. For any non-trivial tenant, adaptive scopes are the right default — they survive reorganisations, country changes, and new hires without manual maintenance. Adaptive scopes require Microsoft 365 E5 or specific Purview add-ons.