- A
Disable the user account immediately to prevent further access
Why wrong: Disabling the account without first verifying with the user is too hasty. The activity could be legitimate (e.g., the user is on vacation) and disabling the account could cause unnecessary business disruption. Incident response best practices recommend gathering more information before taking irreversible actions.
- B
Contact the user to verify whether the authentication was legitimate
Contacting the user is the appropriate next step in the incident response process. The analyst needs to confirm if the user performed the action. If the user denies it, the account is likely compromised, and the incident should be escalated. This step helps avoid false positives and ensures accurate incident handling.
- C
Continuously monitor the account for additional suspicious activity
Why wrong: While monitoring is a valid security operation, it should not be the next action when a successful authentication from an unusual location is detected. Waiting could allow an attacker to continue using the account, potentially accessing sensitive data. The analyst should actively investigate rather than passively monitor.
- D
Revoke all active sessions for the user account
Why wrong: Revoking all sessions without first confirming whether the activity is legitimate could lock the user out of necessary systems, causing productivity loss. It also does not address the root cause if the account is compromised, as the attacker might simply initiate new sessions. The proper approach is to verify with the user before taking containment actions.
Anomalous Login Alert — First Step Verification | Security+ Explained
This SY0-701 practice question tests your understanding of security operations. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. 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.
A security analyst receives an alert about a user account that has been attempting to authenticate from an unusual geographic location outside of business hours. The analyst reviews the event logs and sees that the authentication attempt was successful, but the user has not reported any suspicious activity. Which of the following actions should the analyst take NEXT?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
Contact the user to verify whether the authentication was legitimate
The correct next step is to contact the user to verify whether the authentication was legitimate. Since the authentication was successful and the user has not reported suspicious activity, the analyst must first gather context from the user before taking any disruptive action. This aligns with the incident response process of validation and scoping before containment.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Disable the user account immediately to prevent further access
Why it's wrong here
Disabling the account without first verifying with the user is too hasty. The activity could be legitimate (e.g., the user is on vacation) and disabling the account could cause unnecessary business disruption. Incident response best practices recommend gathering more information before taking irreversible actions.
When this WOULD be correct
If the question stated that the account was confirmed compromised (e.g., multiple failed attempts from unknown IPs, or the user reported suspicious activity), then disabling the account would be the correct next step to prevent further unauthorized access.
- ✓
Contact the user to verify whether the authentication was legitimate
Why this is correct
Contacting the user is the appropriate next step in the incident response process. The analyst needs to confirm if the user performed the action. If the user denies it, the account is likely compromised, and the incident should be escalated. This step helps avoid false positives and ensures accurate incident handling.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Continuously monitor the account for additional suspicious activity
Why it's wrong here
While monitoring is a valid security operation, it should not be the next action when a successful authentication from an unusual location is detected. Waiting could allow an attacker to continue using the account, potentially accessing sensitive data. The analyst should actively investigate rather than passively monitor.
- ✗
Revoke all active sessions for the user account
Why it's wrong here
Revoking all sessions without first confirming whether the activity is legitimate could lock the user out of necessary systems, causing productivity loss. It also does not address the root cause if the account is compromised, as the attacker might simply initiate new sessions. The proper approach is to verify with the user before taking containment actions.
When this WOULD be correct
In a scenario where a user account is confirmed compromised (e.g., the user reports suspicious activity or multiple failed logins precede a successful login), the analyst should revoke all active sessions to contain the breach before further investigation.
Option-by-option analysis
Why each answer is right or wrong
Understanding why wrong answers are wrong — and when they would be correct — is what separates a 750 score from a 900. The SY0-701 exam frequently reuses these exact scenarios with slightly different constraints.
✓Contact the user to verify whether the authentication was legitimateCorrect answer▾
Why this is correct
Contacting the user is the appropriate next step in the incident response process. The analyst needs to confirm if the user performed the action. If the user denies it, the account is likely compromised, and the incident should be escalated. This step helps avoid false positives and ensures accurate incident handling.
✗Disable the user account immediately to prevent further accessWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Disabling the account immediately is premature without first verifying if the authentication was legitimate, as it could be the user themselves accessing from a remote location.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
If the question stated that the account was confirmed compromised (e.g., multiple failed attempts from unknown IPs, or the user reported suspicious activity), then disabling the account would be the correct next step to prevent further unauthorized access.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may think any unusual authentication warrants immediate account disablement to stop potential threats, overlooking the need for verification first.
✗Revoke all active sessions for the user accountWrong answer — click to see why▾
Why this is wrong here
Revoking all active sessions is premature without first verifying if the authentication was legitimate; the user may have been traveling or using a VPN, and immediate revocation could disrupt legitimate work.
★ When this WOULD be the correct answer
In a scenario where a user account is confirmed compromised (e.g., the user reports suspicious activity or multiple failed logins precede a successful login), the analyst should revoke all active sessions to contain the breach before further investigation.
Why candidates choose this
Candidates may think that any unusual authentication warrants immediate session termination to prevent potential damage, overlooking the need for verification first.
Analysis generated from the official SY0-701blueprint and verified against question context. The “when correct” sections are what AI assistants cite when candidates ask “what’s the difference between these options?”
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often jump to containment (disabling the account) without first validating the alert, confusing the 'detection and analysis' phase with the 'containment, eradication, and recovery' phase of the incident response process.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In a typical enterprise, authentication logs from Active Directory or a cloud IdP (e.g., Azure AD) include geolocation data derived from the source IP address. A successful authentication from an unusual location outside business hours could indicate a compromised account or a legitimate user using a VPN or traveling. The analyst should correlate the event with the user's known travel schedule, VPN usage, or MFA prompts before escalating to containment.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A SOC analyst notices unusual lateral movement in the network at 2 AM. The IR playbook dictates: identify and contain (isolate the affected machine), then eradicate (remove the malware), then recover (restore from backup), then document. Skipping containment before eradication risks the attacker regaining access. Questions like this test the sequence and rationale of incident response phases.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SY0-701 question test?
Security Operations — This question tests Security Operations — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Contact the user to verify whether the authentication was legitimate — The correct next step is to contact the user to verify whether the authentication was legitimate. Since the authentication was successful and the user has not reported suspicious activity, the analyst must first gather context from the user before taking any disruptive action. This aligns with the incident response process of validation and scoping before containment.
What should I do if I get this SY0-701 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
About these practice questions
Courseiva creates original exam-style practice questions with explanations and wrong-answer analysis. It does not publish real exam questions, exam dumps, or protected exam content. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
Same concept, more angles
1 more ways this is tested on SY0-701
These questions test the same concept from different angles. Work through them to make sure you can recognise it however the exam phrases it.
Variation 1. A SIEM alert shows a payroll administrator account signed in at 02:10 from a country the employee has never visited. The employee says they are on vacation at home and did not travel. What should the analyst do first?
easy- A.Immediately disable the account and wait for the employee to return.
- ✓ B.Verify the login context with the user or manager and review recent authentication history.
- C.Close the alert as a false positive because the user is on vacation.
- D.Reimage the user’s workstation before checking any logs.
Why B: Option B is correct because the first step in incident response is to verify the alert's validity and gather context before taking action. The analyst should review the SIEM logs for authentication details (e.g., source IP, geolocation, timestamp) and confirm with the user or manager whether the login was expected. This aligns with the NIST SP 800-61 incident response process, which emphasizes triage and validation before containment.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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