This CS0-003 practice question tests your understanding of security operations. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
An organization uses a SIEM with a rule that triggers when a user fails to authenticate five times within 10 minutes. Last night, the rule fired for a service account from an internal IP. What should be the first triage step?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Disable the service account immediately
Why wrong: Could break critical services.
Block the internal IP address at the firewall
Why wrong: Could be a legitimate service.
Review the account's recent activity and correlate with system logs
Determines if failures are legitimate or malicious.
Reset the service account password
Why wrong: Without investigation, could lock out automated processes.
Answer choices
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Review the account's recent activity and correlate with system logs
Option B is correct. The analyst should check the account's normal behavior; service accounts may have automated login attempts. Disabling could cause outages. Blocking IP may be premature. Resetting password might lock out legitimate use.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
Disable the service account immediately
Why it's wrong here
Could break critical services.
Block the internal IP address at the firewall
Why it's wrong here
Could be a legitimate service.
Review the account's recent activity and correlate with system logs
Why this is correct
Determines if failures are legitimate or malicious.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "first" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Reset the service account password
Why it's wrong here
Without investigation, could lock out automated processes.
Common exam traps
Many certification questions include familiar terms but test a specific constraint. Read the exact wording before choosing an answer that is generally true but wrong for this case.
Detailed technical explanation
This question should be treated as a scenario, not a definition check. Identify the problem, the constraint and the best action. Then compare each option against those facts.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
A security analyst at a medium-sized enterprise encounters this scenario during an investigation or architecture review. The correct answer reflects best practice for the specific threat or control described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Security exam questions test whether you can match controls to threats in context — not just recall definitions.
What to study next
Identify which CS0-003 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
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FAQ
Security Operations — This question tests Security Operations — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
The correct answer is: Review the account's recent activity and correlate with system logs — Option B is correct. The analyst should check the account's normal behavior; service accounts may have automated login attempts. Disabling could cause outages. Blocking IP may be premature. Resetting password might lock out legitimate use.
Identify which CS0-003 exam domain this question belongs to, then review the specific concept being tested. Practise related questions in that domain and focus on understanding why each wrong answer is tempting — not just why the correct answer is right.
Yes — watch for: "first". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 23, 2026
This CS0-003 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the CS0-003 exam.
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