- A
Create an automated playbook to reset the user's password.
Why wrong: Playbooks are created after confirming the incident.
- B
Review the alert in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal and classify it as a true or false positive.
First step is to classify the incident.
- C
Turn off the user account in Microsoft Entra ID.
Why wrong: Containment should follow classification.
- D
Reset the user's password immediately to prevent further access.
Why wrong: Containment should follow classification.
Question 1,405 of 1,639
First Step for Unfamiliar Sign-In Incident
This SC-200 practice question tests your understanding of respond to security incidents. 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.
Your organization uses Microsoft Sentinel. A security analyst receives an alert indicating that a user account was used to sign in from an unfamiliar location. You need to investigate the incident using Microsoft Defender XDR. Which action should you take first?
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.
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
✓
Review the alert in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal and classify it as a true or false positive.
The first step in incident response is to validate the alert by reviewing it in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal. This allows the analyst to assess the alert's context, such as sign-in logs, user risk, and related entities, before taking any corrective action. Classifying the alert as a true or false positive ensures that subsequent steps (like password reset or account disablement) are based on accurate threat assessment, preventing unnecessary disruption.
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.
- ✗
Create an automated playbook to reset the user's password.
Why it's wrong here
Playbooks are created after confirming the incident.
- ✓
Review the alert in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal and classify it as a true or false positive.
Why this is correct
First step is to classify the incident.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "first" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Turn off the user account in Microsoft Entra ID.
Why it's wrong here
Containment should follow classification.
- ✗
Reset the user's password immediately to prevent further access.
Why it's wrong here
Containment should follow classification.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates often jump to immediate containment actions like password reset or account disablement, forgetting that the first step in any incident response process is to verify and classify the alert to avoid unnecessary operational impact.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Microsoft Defender XDR correlates signals from Microsoft Entra ID, Microsoft Defender for Identity, and other sources to generate alerts like 'Unfamiliar sign-in properties.' The alert includes a risk level (e.g., low, medium, high) based on machine learning models that analyze factors such as IP reputation, geolocation, and device compliance. By reviewing the alert first, the analyst can access the full incident graph, which shows related alerts and entities, enabling informed triage before any automated or manual response.
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 company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this SC-200 question test?
Respond to security incidents — This question tests Respond to security incidents — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Review the alert in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal and classify it as a true or false positive. — The first step in incident response is to validate the alert by reviewing it in the Microsoft Defender XDR portal. This allows the analyst to assess the alert's context, such as sign-in logs, user risk, and related entities, before taking any corrective action. Classifying the alert as a true or false positive ensures that subsequent steps (like password reset or account disablement) are based on accurate threat assessment, preventing unnecessary disruption.
What should I do if I get this SC-200 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "first". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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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