Validates the knowledge and skills required to develop playbooks, manage incidents, create automations and integrations, and demonstrate the highest standard of deployment methodology and operational best practices with Cortex XDR.
The PCDRA certification validates professional-level knowledge and skills to investigate, detect, and remediate security incidents using Cortex XDR. It covers six exam domains: Threats and Attacks, Prevention and Detection, Investigation, Remediation, Threat Hunting, and Reporting and Architecture.
Recommended prerequisites: EDU-260 (Cortex XDR: Prevention and Deployment), EDU-262 (Cortex XDR: Investigation and Response), plus Palo Alto Networks Certified Cybersecurity Apprentice and Practitioner levels are strongly recommended.
Recognize attack types — exploits, malware, file-less attacks, supply chain attacks, ransomware threats, and MITRE ATT&CK framework
Implement prevention and detection — ransomware defense, malware prevention modules (MPM), exploit prevention modules (EPM), and analytic detection
Conduct investigations using Cortex XDR — navigate console, manage incidents vs alerts, use live terminal, and collaborate on incident management
Perform remediation — navigate remediation suggestions, fix false positives, use blocklist/allowlist/quarantine/isolation/file search and destroy
Execute threat hunting using IOC, BIOC, XQL, and query builder techniques; convert BIOCs into custom prevention rules; leverage Unit 42 intelligence
Build quality reports and understand Cortex XDR architecture — Data Lake, Cortex Agent, Console, Broker, WildFire, and multi-source data ingestion
SOC analysts and security engineers responsible for detection, investigation, and response using the Cortex XDR platform
Incident responders and threat hunters who need to validate operational skills with Cortex XDR investigation and remediation workflows
Security operations professionals deploying Cortex XDR and managing endpoint detection and response at scale
Students and technical professionals seeking to demonstrate advanced knowledge of cybersecurity tenets through Cortex XDR expertise
Zetlan Technologies provides expert-led PCDRA preparation covering all six exam domains from threats and attacks through Cortex XDR architecture with live sessions and practice labs.
Click any domain to expand and explore all topics covered in the official PCDRA exam blueprint.
Master Cortex XDR investigation, threat hunting, and incident response with Zetlan Technologies' expert-led PCDRA preparation program.