Understanding Parent-Child Process Alert Conditions in Microsoft Sentinel — Word Launching cmd.exe
This SC-200 practice question tests your understanding of respond to security incidents. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. 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.
```
{
"type": "Microsoft.SecurityInsights/alertRules",
"apiVersion": "2022-01-01-preview",
"name": "Suspicious Process Creation",
"properties": {
"displayName": "Suspicious Process Creation",
"description": "Detects suspicious process creation events.",
"severity": "High",
"query": "SecurityEvent | where EventID == 4688 | where ProcessName endswith '\\cmd.exe' | where ParentProcessName endswith '\\winword.exe'",
"queryFrequency": "PT5H",
"queryPeriod": "PT5H",
"triggerOperator": "GreaterThan",
"triggerThreshold": 0
}
}
Refer to the exhibit. You are deploying this analytics rule in Microsoft Sentinel. Which activity will trigger an alert?
Exhibit
Refer to the exhibit.
```
{
"type": "Microsoft.SecurityInsights/alertRules",
"apiVersion": "2022-01-01-preview",
"name": "Suspicious Process Creation",
"properties": {
"displayName": "Suspicious Process Creation",
"description": "Detects suspicious process creation events.",
"severity": "High",
"query": "SecurityEvent | where EventID == 4688 | where ProcessName endswith '\\cmd.exe' | where ParentProcessName endswith '\\winword.exe'",
"queryFrequency": "PT5H",
"queryPeriod": "PT5H",
"triggerOperator": "GreaterThan",
"triggerThreshold": 0
}
}
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Word launching cmd.exe
Option E is correct because the analytics rule is configured to trigger an alert when a process creation event (Event ID 4688) has a parent process of 'winword.exe' and a child process of 'cmd.exe'. This specific parent-child relationship indicates that Microsoft Word is launching a command prompt, which is a common technique used in malicious documents to execute commands. The rule's query filters for 'ParentImage' containing 'winword.exe' and 'Image' containing 'cmd.exe', so only when Word launches cmd.exe will the alert fire.
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.
✗
cmd.exe launching winword.exe
Why it's wrong here
Parent/child reversed.
✗
Any process creation event
Why it's wrong here
Query filters specific processes.
✗
Winword.exe execution
Why it's wrong here
Must have child process cmd.exe.
✗
Any cmd.exe execution
Why it's wrong here
Parent must be winword.exe.
✓
Word launching cmd.exe
Why this is correct
Exactly matches the query.
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 often confuse the parent-child process direction, assuming any execution of cmd.exe or winword.exe will trigger the alert, but the rule explicitly requires winword.exe as the parent and cmd.exe as the child, not the reverse.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
The rule leverages Windows Event ID 4688 (Process Creation) from the Security log, which includes fields like 'ParentImage' and 'Image' to track parent-child process relationships. In real-world attacks, adversaries often use macro-enabled Office documents to spawn cmd.exe or PowerShell to download payloads, making this detection a classic example of process tree analysis. The rule's specificity reduces false positives by ignoring normal cmd.exe usage (e.g., from a user's command prompt) and focusing only on the suspicious parent-child pair.
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: Word launching cmd.exe — Option E is correct because the analytics rule is configured to trigger an alert when a process creation event (Event ID 4688) has a parent process of 'winword.exe' and a child process of 'cmd.exe'. This specific parent-child relationship indicates that Microsoft Word is launching a command prompt, which is a common technique used in malicious documents to execute commands. The rule's query filters for 'ParentImage' containing 'winword.exe' and 'Image' containing 'cmd.exe', so only when Word launches cmd.exe will the alert fire.
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.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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