User Security
Every identity verified, every login logged, every access decision enforced — not optional, not risk-based.
Phishing-resistant MFA, federated identity, single sign-on, cloud access security, and complete authentication logging — applied to every user across your distributed environment.
40,000+
users under management
400+
financial services environments
30+
years serving financial services
The MFA Reality
Not all MFA is created equal — and the wrong kind creates a false sense of security.
CISA does not consider push notifications, SMS, or standard OTP codes to be phishing-resistant. Phishing-resistant MFA requires FIDO2/WebAuthn — a cryptographic handshake that cannot be intercepted, socially engineered, or replayed.
MFA Fatigue Attacks
Attackers who steal credentials flood the user with push notifications — at 2 AM, during meetings, nonstop. The user taps "Approve" just to make it stop. This caused the Uber breach (2022) and attacks on Cisco, Okta, and others.
What Phishing-Resistant Looks Like
Number matching: the user types a number from the login screen into the authenticator. Biometric re-authentication confirms the person. Two extra seconds. Stops the entire category of fatigue attacks — the user cannot approve what they cannot see.
CISA Zero Trust Mandate
OMB M-22-09 mandates phishing-resistant authentication. FIDO2/WebAuthn is the only widely available standard that meets the requirement. CISA urges all organizations to implement it as part of Zero Trust architecture.
FCI’s Standard
FCI enforces phishing-resistant MFA on every login — not risk-based, not optional. Every authentication requires a deliberate, verifiable action. A checkbox is not protection. Enforcement is.
Authentication Independence
When the lock and the key are made by the same company under attack, you have a single point of failure.
Token theft was the #1 attack vector against M365 in 2025 (31% of breaches). Microsoft saw a 146% rise in AiTM attacks in 2024. The AuthQuake vulnerability allowed unlimited MFA brute-force with zero user notification.
Token Theft & AiTM Attacks
Attackers proxy the real Microsoft login page. The user completes MFA normally through Microsoft Authenticator — but the attacker captures the session token. Access to Outlook, OneDrive, Teams, and SharePoint — no MFA prompt ever again.
AuthQuake (Dec 2024)
Oasis Security disclosed a critical flaw: unlimited brute-force of MFA codes with no rate limiting and no user notification. 50%+ bypass success in under 70 minutes. 400M+ Office 365 seats affected before the patch.
The Concentration Problem
Credentials, MFA, tokens, and logs all flow through Microsoft. When attackers target the ecosystem, every layer is exposed simultaneously. The verifier should never be the same entity being verified.
FCI’s Approach: Divide to Secure
FCI deploys an independent authenticator outside the Microsoft ecosystem entirely. MFA challenge, verification, and logging happen through a separate security boundary. A Microsoft compromise does not compromise the authenticator.
The Problem
Most firms cannot prove who accessed what, when, or how.
MFA That Isn’t Actually Enforced
MFA is risk-based — Microsoft decides when to challenge. If the login looks “normal,” MFA is skipped. There is no log showing when it was bypassed.
Federation, SSO & MFA Conflated
Three different technologies for three different purposes. Most firms — and many IT providers — conflate them. Misconfigured identity infrastructure creates gaps no one recognizes.
Incomplete Authentication Logging
Native logs miss risk level, device location, auth method, and login source country. Without extended logging, firms cannot answer the questions regulators will ask.
No Lifecycle Visibility
Users are added when they join. But who detects inactive accounts, anomalous behavior, or ensures every access point is closed when someone leaves?
What FCI Delivers
Six capabilities — applied to every user, enforced continuously.
FCI builds a complete authentication ecosystem — federation, SSO, CASB, and phishing-resistant MFA working together — so every access decision is verified, logged, and provable.
Phishing-Resistant MFA
CISA-recommended, enforced on every login. Number matching + biometric. Not risk-based, not optional.
Federation & Identity Sync
Centrally managed credentials synced across all integrated applications
Single Sign-On
Eliminates repeated authentication while maintaining verified sessions
CASB
User verified, device trusted, network known — before access is granted
Extended Logging
Full context: time, user, app, risk, location, method, source country
User Lifecycle
CISO-approved onboarding, anomaly detection, and complete decommissioning
Mobile Devices
Securing mobile access without invasive MDM.
The MDM Problem
Battery drain, restricted functionality, a surveillance experience on a personal device. Costly to license, complex to administer, and unacceptable to most BYOD users.
FCI’s Approach
Conditional access at the point of entry. OS current, screen lock enabled, no jailbreak — the user remediates on their own terms. No agent. No surveillance. The firm gets security; the user keeps privacy.
How FCI Is Different
Same tools, different results — four reasons why.
Expert Mastery
FCI knows the difference between federation and SSO, knows why risk-based MFA creates gaps, and knows which CASB policies matter for regulatory compliance. Hundreds of deployments.
Automated Procedures
User provisioning, deprovisioning, and policy enforcement automated through templates. Identity controls enforced continuously — not configured once and hoped for.
Consistent Controls
Every user, every application, every login. Contractors, employees, BYOD — all under the same authentication standard. No exceptions.
Persistent Proof
Extended logging captures risk level, source country, device location, and method used — not just “login succeeded.” Evidence produced every day, not just on audit day.
Interconnection
User security gates access to everything else.
A verified identity is the access decision that determines whether a user reaches the endpoint, the network, the data, and the cloud applications.
The Principle
No single domain failure defeats the system — every layer reinforces every other layer
Endpoint Security
Authentication verifies user and device before granting access
Network Security
Valid identity + unknown network triggers additional scrutiny
Data Security
User permissions anchor classification and DLP controls
Cloud App Security
CASB policies tie directly to verified user identity
Firm Security
Every authentication event feeds the FCI Portal
What You Can Prove
Evidence that builds itself — every day, not just on audit day.
Authentication Verified
Proof every login was verified by phishing-resistant MFA — method, device context, login source
Access Controlled
CASB Zero Trust enforcement — user verified, device trusted, network known
Lifecycle Managed
CISO-approved onboarding, anomaly detection, complete decommissioning
Compliance Documented
Extended logs: who, what, when, where, how — stored beyond Microsoft’s native limits
Independence Proven
Authenticator outside Microsoft ecosystem — separate verification, separate logs
FCI Portal
User inventory, login patterns, anomalies — real-time visibility across the environment
FINRA
SEC
NAIC
State Regulators
Cyber Insurance
Home Office
Ready to close the identity gaps your firm can’t see?
FCI works with broker-dealers and branch offices, insurance carriers and agencies, and RIAs. Start with a gap analysis — it is free, takes 30 minutes, and commits you to nothing.
Phone
973-227-8878
Web
fcicyber.com