- A
EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceProcessEvents
Correct. Join these tables on the SHA256 hash of the attachment to link the email attachment to a specific process that was created after the attachment was opened.
- B
EmailEvents and DeviceProcessEvents
Incorrect. EmailEvents does not have attachment file details; it only contains email-level properties like subject and sender.
- C
EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceFileEvents
Why wrong: Incorrect. DeviceFileEvents logs file creation and modification, not process creation. The requirement is to detect the process that was executed, not the file drop.
- D
EmailUrlInfo and DeviceProcessEvents
Why wrong: Incorrect. EmailUrlInfo logs URLs in email bodies, not HTML attachments. The scenario involves an attachment, not a URL directly in the email body.
Quick Answer
The answer is EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceProcessEvents. This is correct because the custom detection rule must trace the SHA256 hash of the HTML attachment from the email to the process it spawns on the endpoint, and joining these two tables on the SHA256 hash field directly correlates the malicious attachment with the resulting process creation event in Advanced Hunting. On the MS-102 exam, this scenario tests your ability to chain email and endpoint data in KQL, a common requirement for building detection rules that cover the full kill chain from email delivery to binary execution. A frequent trap is choosing EmailEvents instead of EmailAttachmentInfo, but remember that EmailEvents lacks the attachment hash needed for the join. Memory tip: think “hash to hash” — the attachment’s hash in EmailAttachmentInfo must match the hash of the file that triggers the process in DeviceProcessEvents.
MS-102 Practice Question: Manage security and threats by using Microsoft Defender XDR
This MS-102 practice question tests your understanding of manage security and threats by using microsoft defender xdr. 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 is investigating a potential attack where a user received a malicious email with an HTML attachment. The HTML file, when opened, fetched a JavaScript payload from a remote server that then dropped a binary on the user's machine and executed it. The analyst wants to create a custom detection rule in Microsoft 365 Defender Advanced Hunting that alerts when an email contains an HTML attachment with an external link, and that attachment is opened, causing a process creation. Which two tables should the analyst join in the KQL query to correlate the email attachment with the resulting process?
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
EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceProcessEvents
Option A is correct because the analyst needs to correlate the email attachment (identified by its SHA256 hash in EmailAttachmentInfo) with the process creation event (DeviceProcessEvents) that occurs when the HTML attachment is opened and executes a binary. Joining these two tables on the SHA256 hash of the attachment allows the query to trace from the malicious email attachment directly to the resulting process on the same device, fulfilling the detection requirement.
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.
- ✓
EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceProcessEvents
Why this is correct
Correct. Join these tables on the SHA256 hash of the attachment to link the email attachment to a specific process that was created after the attachment was opened.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✓
EmailEvents and DeviceProcessEvents
Why this is correct
Incorrect. EmailEvents does not have attachment file details; it only contains email-level properties like subject and sender.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceFileEvents
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. DeviceFileEvents logs file creation and modification, not process creation. The requirement is to detect the process that was executed, not the file drop.
- ✗
EmailUrlInfo and DeviceProcessEvents
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. EmailUrlInfo logs URLs in email bodies, not HTML attachments. The scenario involves an attachment, not a URL directly in the email body.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often confuse EmailEvents (email metadata) with EmailAttachmentInfo (attachment details), or mistakenly think DeviceFileEvents (file events) can substitute for DeviceProcessEvents (process creation), when only the hash-based join between EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceProcessEvents directly links the attachment to its execution.
Trap categories for this question
Scenario analysis trap
Incorrect. EmailUrlInfo logs URLs in email bodies, not HTML attachments. The scenario involves an attachment, not a URL directly in the email body.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Under the hood, EmailAttachmentInfo stores the SHA256 hash of each attachment, while DeviceProcessEvents records the SHA256 hash of the executable image that was launched. By joining on SHA256, the query can identify cases where an attachment's hash matches the hash of a process that was started, even if the binary was dropped with a different name. In real-world scenarios, attackers often use HTML smuggling to deliver a base64-encoded payload that is decoded and executed by the browser, so the process creation event may show the browser (e.g., msedge.exe) spawning a child process like powershell.exe or cmd.exe, requiring the join to also consider parent-child process relationships.
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 cloud solutions architect for a retail company is evaluating services for a new workload. The correct answer here reflects best practice for the specific scenario described — not a general cloud recommendation. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Cloud exam questions reward reading the constraint carefully: the same technology can be right or wrong depending on the use case.
What to study next
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this MS-102 question test?
Manage security and threats by using Microsoft Defender XDR — This question tests Manage security and threats by using Microsoft Defender XDR — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: EmailAttachmentInfo and DeviceProcessEvents — Option A is correct because the analyst needs to correlate the email attachment (identified by its SHA256 hash in EmailAttachmentInfo) with the process creation event (DeviceProcessEvents) that occurs when the HTML attachment is opened and executes a binary. Joining these two tables on the SHA256 hash of the attachment allows the query to trace from the malicious email attachment directly to the resulting process on the same device, fulfilling the detection requirement.
What should I do if I get this MS-102 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
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
This MS-102 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Microsoft 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 MS-102 exam.
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