gpt-5-high vs o4-mini-low KQL Benchmark

An analyst suspects a user or script ran a service enumeration command on a Linux system. Review process events to find the service-listing invocation and specify the full command that was executed.

On a Linux host, a ping command was executed to test internet connectivity. Determine which IP address was used as the ping target.

A Linux host’s Syslog shows a shell-based network discovery script ran multiple commands. One of them listed current TCP connections. Which utility was invoked?

Using Windows process event logs, investigate PowerShell activity around lsass.exe memory capture. What was the name of the script file invoked to perform the dump?

On a Windows endpoint, look for evidence of a base64-encoded PowerShell payload execution. Which executable launched the encoded command?

On a Linux system, identify the script that was generated by decoding a base64 data file and then executed. What was the filename of that script?

On a Windows host, an attacker leveraged COMSVCS.DLL via rundll32.exe to dump the memory of svchost.exe into a file under the Temp directory. Review the file creation logs to determine the exact name of the dump file that was generated.

Windows process creation logs show a PowerShell-driven file transfer to an FTP service. Which executable was leveraged to perform this exfiltration?

Examine the logs from the Linux system for events related to the systemd timer activation. Identify any records indicating that a new timer unit was started and enabled, and determine which timer name was used.

On a Windows host, investigate process events to find when Task Manager was launched via cmd with an unusual flag. What was the full command executed?

Investigate Windows process events for PowerShell activity that leverages WMI to register a scheduled task via XML import. What was the name of the XML file supplied to the RegisterByXml method?

In a Linux environment, you observe a process labeled like the cron daemon but running from an unexpected path. Investigate creation events to uncover the actual filename used by this fake cron process.

Review recent Windows process event logs for PowerShell activity that suggests local group enumeration through WMI. What exact command was executed?

On a Linux endpoint, process events reveal a chain of group‐enumeration utilities executed by a single session. Which utility was used to query the system’s group database?

An analyst suspects that a restricted shell escape was executed using a common Perl package manager on Linux. Review the process execution records to determine which tool was invoked to spawn the shell.

On a Linux host, identify the process invocation that altered a user’s login shell. What was the full command used?

On a Linux system, analyze the process logs for suspicious command line activity that includes a sequence of commands indicating a pipe-to-shell operation. Identify the tool that was used to execute this piped command, paying special attention to its use in downloading and running script content.

While reviewing Windows process events, you observe a command that recursively deleted a folder under the temporary directory. Use the process event data to identify which process or tool executed this recursive delete.

On a Windows device, there’s evidence that PowerShell history was wiped by deleting the history file. What was the exact command used to perform this action?

Suspiciously, the recycle bin appears empty system-wide. Determine which command was executed on Windows to clear the system's recycle bin directory, including any switches and environment variables.

A suspicious actor appears to have removed the USN change journal on a Windows workstation. Investigate process start records to find out exactly which command was used to delete the journal. What was the full command line invoked?

A Windows system shows a cmd.exe process spawn that appears to have been used for environment discovery. Review the process creation records to identify the exact command the adversary ran to enumerate environment variables.

An attacker on Linux used bash to copy all files from /var/spool/mail into a newly created subdirectory before modifying them. What is the name of that subdirectory?

Evidence shows that the Windows Defender startup entry was tampered with via an elevated command prompt. Investigate registry events related to the Run key to discover which executable replaced the default SecurityHealth value. What is the name of the new program?

A user‐space process on a Linux device invoked a shell to capture and display the system’s environment variables and path. Which exact command was used to perform this discovery?