Research Findings
Phishing-resistant MFA is most effective when enrollment, reset, and recovery workflows preserve the same assurance level. In many organizations, the sign-in ceremony is strong while the recovery path still relies on a phone call, a shared identity attribute, or a rushed support decision.
Analysis Interpretation
The gap matters because attackers adapt toward the weakest identity ceremony. If an adversary cannot intercept a credential or replay a session, they may instead attempt to convince support staff to remove a factor, register a new device, or approve temporary access.
Operational Pattern
Security teams should maintain a recurring review of recovery events, including who approved the change, what evidence was used, which factor was added, and whether the user performed unusual actions afterward. Those records should feed identity threat detection and incident review.