What is a password-reset event?¶

A password-reset event records a stage in replacing an account password. The stage may be a request, recovery check, link or code issue, administrator action, completed change or failure.

Reset workflows have multiple actors and checkpoints¶

The account holder, support staff, an administrator or an automated security control may initiate the process. An email being sent does not prove it was received or used, while a completed change does not identify who controlled the recovery channel.

Relevant fields can include initiating actor, target account, method, source, result and transaction. Existing sessions and tokens may remain valid after the password changes unless the platform explicitly revokes them.

Follow the sequence before and after the change¶

Preserve recovery events, delivery records, administrator audit entries, contact-detail changes and subsequent authentication. Establish the verification required at each stage and which event confirms that the new password took effect.

Where takeover is alleged, look for changes to recovery methods, trusted devices, MFA and session revocation around the reset. Report separately who initiated the workflow, what the system verified, whether the password changed and what access remained.