Question 1hardmultiple choice
Full question →hardmultiple choiceObjective-mapped
A security analyst is investigating an advanced persistent threat campaign that involves lateral movement using RDP. The analyst suspects that an attacker uses RDP from DeviceA to DeviceB, and then within a few minutes executes a malicious PowerShell script on DeviceB. The analyst wants to create a custom detection rule in Microsoft 365 Defender that triggers when this pattern occurs. Which KQL query pattern should be used to correlate these events across devices?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Good practice is not just finding the correct option. The wrong answers often show the exact trap the exam wants you to fall into.
A
Best answer
Use a self-join: query DeviceProcessEvents for mstsc.exe, extract the target device (e.g., from command line), and then join with another query on DeviceProcessEvents for PowerShell on the target device where the time difference between the events is less than 10 minutes.
This pattern correctly joins the two event sequences: the RDP client process on the source device and the subsequent script execution on the target device, with a time constraint to correlate them.
B
Distractor review
Query DeviceNetworkEvents for RDP connections (port 3389) and then join with DeviceProcessEvents for PowerShell on the same device.
Network events show connections but do not easily reveal the process that initiated them. This approach is less direct and may miss the context of the RDP client process (mstsc.exe).
C
Distractor review
Use the 'union' operator to combine all mstsc.exe and PowerShell events, then summarize by device and time.
Union merely combines tables; it does not correlate events across devices. You need a join with a time window to link the two related events.
D
Distractor review
Query DeviceLogonEvents for RDP logon type and then join with DeviceProcessEvents for PowerShell on the same device.
DeviceLogonEvents show successful logons, but the scenario focuses on the RDP client process (mstsc.exe) which may not always be logged as a logon event. This would miss the source device process.
Common exam trap
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Technical deep dive
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
- PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
- Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
- NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
- Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
- Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
- Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Related practice questions
Related SC-200 practice-question pages
Use these pages to review the topic behind this question. This is how one missed question becomes focused revision.
More questions from this exam
Keep practising from the same exam bank, or move into a focused topic page if this question exposed a weak area.
Question 1
A Microsoft Sentinel scheduled analytics rule detects impossible travel but creates too many duplicate incidents for the same user within a short period. Which two rule settings should you tune? (Choose 2.)
Question 2
A phishing email was delivered to several users. The analyst wants to find all messages in the campaign, see delivery actions, and perform remediation from the Microsoft 365 Defender portal. Which tool should they use?
Question 3
A security analyst in Microsoft Defender for Cloud receives an alert that an Azure VM has a vulnerability with a high severity. The analyst wants to see the detailed finding, including the steps to remediate. Which blade or page should the analyst open?
Question 4
A company uses Microsoft Defender for Cloud to protect an Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) cluster. The security team wants to receive security alerts about suspicious activities within the cluster, such as a container running with root privileges or attempts to read sensitive host paths. Which Defender for Cloud plan must be enabled to generate these alerts?
Question 5
A security analyst is configuring Microsoft Sentinel scheduled analytics rules to detect brute-force attacks on Microsoft Entra ID. Arrange the steps in the correct order from first to last.
Question 6
An organization uses Microsoft 365 Defender. A security analyst is investigating a malware incident on a user's device. The automated investigation and response (AIR) has already isolated the device from the network. The analyst now needs to collect a copy of a specific suspicious file from the device for further analysis. Which action should the analyst initiate from the device's entity page?
FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SC-200 question test?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Use a self-join: query DeviceProcessEvents for mstsc.exe, extract the target device (e.g., from command line), and then join with another query on DeviceProcessEvents for PowerShell on the target device where the time difference between the events is less than 10 minutes. — To detect lateral movement followed by script execution, you need to correlate two sets of events: (1) Remote Desktop connection (mstsc.exe) on the source device (DeviceA) targeting DeviceB, and (2) process creation (e.g., PowerShell) on the target device (DeviceB) shortly after the connection. This can be achieved by querying DeviceProcessEvents for mstsc.exe, extracting the target device from command line arguments, and then joining with another query for PowerShell events on the target device, using a time window constraint (e.g., within 10 minutes).
What should I do if I get this SC-200 question wrong?
Then try more questions from the same exam bank and focus on understanding why the wrong options are tempting.
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