The answer is to create an automation rule that triggers the playbook when the incident is created. This is the most efficient method because automation rules in Microsoft Sentinel are designed to execute playbooks immediately upon incident creation, without any manual intervention or polling delays. The rule evaluates conditions like severity or entity type and runs the playbook in real time, isolating the user’s machine and disabling their account as part of the automated response. On the SC-200 exam, this concept tests your understanding of how to automate playbook execution on incident creation using automation rules, a key difference from using analytics rules or Logic Apps directly. A common trap is choosing to attach the playbook to an analytics rule, which adds latency because it runs before the incident is created, or selecting a manual option. Memory tip: think “automation rule = instant trigger on incident creation,” while analytics rules trigger on raw events, not the incident itself.
SC-200 Manage a security operations environment Practice Question
This SC-200 practice question tests your understanding of manage a security operations environment. 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 a high-severity incident in Microsoft Sentinel for a user who is suspected of lateral movement. The analyst wants to automatically run a playbook that isolates the user's machine and disables their account when such an incident is created. What is the most efficient way to achieve this?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Create an automation rule that triggers the playbook when the incident is created
Option D is correct because it uses an automation rule to trigger the playbook on incident creation, which is the recommended approach. Option A and B add unnecessary latency. Option C is manual and not automated.
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.
✗
Configure a Logic Apps trigger to poll for new incidents every minute
Why it's wrong here
Polling is inefficient and introduces delay; event-driven automation rules are better.
✗
Train analysts to manually run the playbook when they see the incident
Why it's wrong here
Manual actions are not automated and can be missed.
✗
Create an analytics rule that runs a playbook as part of its alert generation
Why it's wrong here
Playbooks cannot be invoked directly from analytics rules; you use automation rules.
✓
Create an automation rule that triggers the playbook when the incident is created
Why this is correct
Automation rules are designed to run playbooks automatically based on incident creation or update.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
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
How to think about this question
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.
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.
Use explanations to understand the rule behind the answer.
TExam Day Tips
→Underline the problem statement mentally.
→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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this SC-200 question in full detail.
Identify which SC-200 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.
Manage a security operations environment — This question tests Manage a security operations environment — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Create an automation rule that triggers the playbook when the incident is created — Option D is correct because it uses an automation rule to trigger the playbook on incident creation, which is the recommended approach. Option A and B add unnecessary latency. Option C is manual and not automated.
What should I do if I get this SC-200 question wrong?
Identify which SC-200 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.
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 →
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. You are a SOC analyst investigating a high-severity incident. The incident involves a user who received a phishing email and clicked a link. Microsoft Defender for Office 365 detected the email as phishing and blocked the URL at time of click, but a follow-up investigation reveals that the user's mailbox has suspicious forwarding rules. You need to ensure that similar incidents are automatically remediated in the future. What should you configure in Microsoft Sentinel?
medium
A.Configure entity behavior analytics to automatically block the user.
B.Create an analytics rule that detects suspicious forwarding rules and automatically removes them.
✓ C.Create an automation rule that triggers a playbook to remove the forwarding rule when an incident with the 'Phishing' tactic is created.
D.Add the user to a watchlist that triggers an automated investigation.
Why C: Automation rules in Microsoft Sentinel allow you to automatically trigger playbooks (e.g., to remove forwarding rules) when incidents are created. Option A is correct because automation rules can invoke a playbook that removes the forwarding rule. Option B is wrong because analytics rules create alerts, not automated actions on incidents. Option C is wrong because watchlists are for reference data, not automation. Option D is wrong because entity behavior analytics is for detecting anomalies, not automated remediation.
Last reviewed: Jun 21, 2026
Question Discussion
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This SC-200 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 SC-200 exam.
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