SC-200 Respond to security incidents Practice Question
This SC-200 practice question tests your understanding of respond to security incidents. The scenario asks you to isolate a root cause — eliminate options that address a different problem before choosing. 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.
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit. The following KQL query is used in a Microsoft Sentinel analytics rule to detect anomalous Azure AD sign-ins:
```kql
let threshold = 10;
SigninLogs
| where TimeGenerated > ago(1h)
| summarize count() by UserPrincipalName, IPAddress
| where count_ > threshold
| join kind=inner (SigninLogs
| where TimeGenerated > ago(1h)
| where RiskLevelDuringSignIn == "high")
on UserPrincipalName, IPAddress
```
The analyst notices that the rule does not fire for a user who has 12 sign-ins from the same IP address, but all are low risk. The expected behavior is to alert when a single user has more than 10 sign-ins from the same IP with at least one high-risk sign-in. What is the issue?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "least"
Why it matters: You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit. The following KQL query is used in a Microsoft Sentinel analytics rule to detect anomalous Azure AD sign-ins:
```kql
let threshold = 10;
SigninLogs
| where TimeGenerated > ago(1h)
| summarize count() by UserPrincipalName, IPAddress
| where count_ > threshold
| join kind=inner (SigninLogs
| where TimeGenerated > ago(1h)
| where RiskLevelDuringSignIn == "high")
on UserPrincipalName, IPAddress
```
A
The join should be on UserPrincipalName only, not IPAddress.
Why wrong: The requirement is same IP, so IPAddress must be included.
B
The join should be leftouter to include sign-ins without high risk.
Why wrong: Leftouter would include all, but the requirement is to require at least one high-risk.
C
The threshold is set to 10, but the user has 12 sign-ins, so it should fire.
Why wrong: The threshold is met, but the join condition fails because no high-risk sign-in exists.
D
The query requires a high-risk sign-in from the same IP, but none exist, so no match.
The inner join only returns rows where a high-risk sign-in exists for that user and IP.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The query requires a high-risk sign-in from the same IP, but none exist, so no match.
Option D is correct because the KQL query uses an inner join on UserPrincipalName and IPAddress, which only returns rows where a high-risk sign-in exists from the same IP. Since all 12 sign-ins from that IP are low risk, the join produces no matching rows, and the rule does not fire. The threshold of 10 is irrelevant when the join condition fails to produce any results.
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.
✗
The join should be on UserPrincipalName only, not IPAddress.
Why it's wrong here
The requirement is same IP, so IPAddress must be included.
✗
The join should be leftouter to include sign-ins without high risk.
Why it's wrong here
Leftouter would include all, but the requirement is to require at least one high-risk.
✗
The threshold is set to 10, but the user has 12 sign-ins, so it should fire.
Why it's wrong here
The threshold is met, but the join condition fails because no high-risk sign-in exists.
✓
The query requires a high-risk sign-in from the same IP, but none exist, so no match.
Why this is correct
The inner join only returns rows where a high-risk sign-in exists for that user and IP.
Clue confirmation
The clue word "least" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates focus on the numeric threshold (10 vs. 12) and overlook the join logic, assuming the rule should fire because the count exceeds the threshold, when in fact the join condition is the root cause of the failure.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
In Kusto Query Language (KQL), an inner join (default) only returns rows where both sides have matching keys. Here, the query joins sign-in logs on UserPrincipalName and IPAddress, filtering the right side for high-risk sign-ins. If no high-risk sign-in exists from that IP, the join yields zero rows, and the subsequent `summarize` and `where` clauses never execute. A real-world scenario is detecting brute-force attacks where a single IP shows many low-risk sign-ins but one high-risk sign-in indicates a successful compromise; without that high-risk event, the rule correctly remains silent.
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.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this SC-200 question in full detail.
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: The query requires a high-risk sign-in from the same IP, but none exist, so no match. — Option D is correct because the KQL query uses an inner join on UserPrincipalName and IPAddress, which only returns rows where a high-risk sign-in exists from the same IP. Since all 12 sign-ins from that IP are low risk, the join produces no matching rows, and the rule does not fire. The threshold of 10 is irrelevant when the join condition fails to produce any results.
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: "least". You want the option with minimum overhead, fewest steps, or lowest impact — not the most feature-rich or comprehensive answer.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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