Automated Investigation for High Severity Alerts in Defender for Endpoint
Your organization uses Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. You need to ensure that when a high severity alert is generated, an automated investigation is launched immediately. What is the correct configuration?
Quick Answer
The correct configuration is to adjust the automated investigation and response settings in Microsoft 365 Defender to automatically investigate alerts. This is because Defender for Endpoint’s automation level determines whether high severity alerts trigger an immediate, self-contained investigation without requiring manual intervention. On the SC-200 exam, this concept tests your understanding of how automation levels—such as full, semi, or no automation—directly impact incident response workflows; a common trap is confusing alert suppression (which only reduces noise) with automated investigation, or mistaking advanced hunting for a response mechanism. Remember that automated investigation for high severity alerts is governed by the automation level, not by indicators or hunting queries. A useful memory tip is to think “high severity, high automation”—if the alert is critical, the system should act without waiting for you.
⚠ Common exam trap
Watch out — candidates often confuse custom detection rules (advanced hunting) or custom indicators with the ability to trigger automated investigations, when in fact the correct configuration is a simple toggle in the automated investigation and response settings within Microsoft 365 Defender.
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
✓
In Microsoft 365 Defender, configure automated investigation and response settings to automatically investigate alerts.
Microsoft 365 Defender's automated investigation and response (AIR) capabilities allow you to configure automatic investigation for alerts of specific severity levels. By enabling this setting for high severity alerts, Defender for Endpoint will immediately launch an investigation when such an alert is generated, without requiring manual intervention.
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 a custom indicator in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint.
Why it's wrong here
Custom indicators set allow, block or alert behaviour for files, IPs and URLs; they do not launch automated investigations. They are tempting because indicators do drive response actions, and would be correct when you need to block a specific hash or domain.
- ✗
Use advanced hunting to create a custom detection rule.
Why it's wrong here
Custom detection rules run scheduled queries and raise alerts; they do not trigger automated investigation on an existing high severity alert. It is tempting because advanced hunting supports proactive detection, but the required behaviour is configured through automated investigation and response settings in Microsoft Defender for Endpoint.
- ✗
In Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, set up an alert suppression rule.
Why it's wrong here
Suppression rules silence or downgrade matching alerts, so no investigation is triggered at all — the opposite of the requirement. They are tempting when tuning out known-benign detections, such as repeated alerts from an approved scanner, to reduce analyst noise.
- ✓
In Microsoft 365 Defender, configure automated investigation and response settings to automatically investigate alerts.
Why this is correct
Configuring automated investigation and response in Microsoft 365 Defender directly satisfies the requirement to launch investigations on alerts. AIR settings let you toggle automatic investigation for specific alert severities, so high severity alerts trigger investigations immediately without manual intervention, unlike device groups or custom detections.
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Variation 1. Your organization uses Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. You need to ensure that when a malware alert is generated, an automated investigation is triggered. What should you configure?
easy- A.Configure the Action center settings.
- B.Create custom indicators of compromise (IOCs).
- C.Use threat analytics to trigger investigations.
- ✓ D.Enable automated investigation and remediation in the Microsoft 365 Defender portal.
Why D: Enabling automated investigation and remediation in the Microsoft 365 Defender portal is the specific configuration that triggers an automated investigation when a malware alert is generated by Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. This feature allows the security operations team to define the automation level (e.g., full, semi, or no automation) for alerts, ensuring that when a malware alert fires, the system automatically initiates an investigation to contain and remediate the threat without manual intervention.
JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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.