Secure User Delete

Feature Owner: Krizha Onise Cortez
Module: Review Workflow
Priority: P1
Sprint: Fully Implemented
Date: April 2026

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

What is this feature?

Secure User Delete provides a protected workflow for permanently deleting user accounts. Before deletion, administrators are required to complete a Verification Prompt (Re-authentication) to confirm their identity.

Why does it matter?

Deleting users is an irreversible action that can affect learner progress, creator ownership, and platform integrity. This feature prevents accidental or unauthorized deletions by requiring administrator verification before executing the operation.

What's the MVP scope?

• Delete users from the Admin Panel.

• Require successful Verification Prompt before deletion.

• Prevent unauthorized delete requests.

• Record deletion activity through audit logging.

• Display appropriate success and failure feedback.

1. USER PAIN POINT & SOLUTION

Without Secure User Delete

Administrators could accidentally remove users or perform destructive actions without an additional verification step.

Pain Point
Emotional: Fear of making irreversible mistakes.
Functional: No safeguard before deleting important user records.
Business Impact: Increased security risks and accidental data loss.

Current State (Already Implemented)

Administrators must successfully complete the Verification Prompt before any user deletion request is processed.

2. 4D FRAMEWORK MAPPING

Diagnose

Identifies high-risk destructive actions.

Design

Introduces an additional security layer before deletion.

Develop

Verifies administrator identity before executing delete operations.

Deliver

Ensures only authorized administrators can permanently remove users.

3. USER FLOWS

Entry Point

Admin Dashboard → User Management

Success Criteria

Administrator successfully verifies identity and permanently deletes the selected user.

Main Flow

1. Open User Management.

2. Select a user.

3. Click Delete.

4. Verification Prompt appears.

5. Administrator successfully verifies identity.

6. Delete request is executed.

7. User is removed.

8. Success notification is displayed.

Edge Cases

• Incorrect password.

• Expired verification token.

• Unauthorized administrator.

• User already deleted.

• Database failure.

Decision Points

IF verification succeeds
Continue deletion.

ELSE
Cancel deletion and display an error.

4. INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE

Primary Information

• User Details

• Delete Action

• Verification Prompt

Secondary Information

• Verification Status

• Authentication Method

• Delete Confirmation

Tertiary Information

• Audit Logs

• Re-authentication Token

Actions

Primary CTA

• Delete User

Secondary Actions

• Cancel

• Verify Identity

5. WIREFRAMES

Excluded — Feature fully implemented.

6. WIREFLOWS

Excluded — Feature fully implemented.

7. PROTOTYPE

Excluded — Feature fully implemented.

8. BACKEND SCHEMA

Database Tables

admin_reauth_tokens

Stores temporary verification tokens before sensitive operations.

Example:

{
  "admin_clerk_id": "...",
  "token": "...",
  "expires_at": "...",
  "used": false
}

audit_logs

Records successful and failed deletion attempts.

9. API ENDPOINTS

• GET /api/admin/reauth

  • Determines the administrator's authentication method.

• POST /api/admin/reauth

  • Verifies administrator credentials and issues a temporary verification token.

• DELETE /api/admin/users/[id]

  • Deletes the selected user after validating the verification token.

10. DATA REQUIREMENTS

Frontend Needs

• User ID

• Verification Token

• Authentication Method

• Delete Status

• Error State

API Calls Frontend Will Make

• Retrieve authentication method.

• Verify administrator.

• Delete user.

11. PERFORMANCE CONSIDERATIONS

Database Optimization

Verification tokens are temporary and single-use. Deletion operations occur only after successful verification to reduce unnecessary database operations.

12. SECURITY & AUTHORIZATION

Who Can Access This Feature?

Administrator
Full access to delete users after successful verification.

Creator
No access.

Learner
No access.

13. ERROR HANDLING

Current Existing Error Handling

• Invalid password returns an authentication error.

• Expired verification tokens are rejected.

• Used verification tokens cannot be reused.

• Unauthorized users cannot perform deletion.

• Database failures return server errors.

• Failed verification attempts are logged.

14. TESTING CHECKLIST

Happy Path

• Verify administrator.

• Delete user.

• Display success notification.

• Audit log created.

Edge Cases

• Incorrect password.

• Expired token.

• Token reuse.

• Unauthorized access.

• Database failure.

• User not found.

15. OPEN QUESTIONS

• Should deleted users be recoverable through soft deletion?

• Should multi-factor authentication be required for deletion?

• Should bulk deletion be supported?

16. OUT OF SCOPE

• Bulk user deletion.

• Soft delete and recovery.

• Scheduled account deletion.

• Multi-factor authentication.

17. SUCCESS METRICS

• Verification success rate.

• Successful user deletion rate.

• Failed unauthorized deletion attempts.

• Audit log completeness.

18. DEPENDENCIES

This feature depends on:

• Verification Prompt

• Clerk Authentication

• Supabase

• Audit Logging

These features depend on this:

• User Management

• Admin Dashboard

• Review Workflow

19. TIMELINE & OWNERSHIP

Sprint: Feature implemented and deployed.

Backend: Multiple Contributors
Frontend: Krizha Onise Cortez
Estimated Completion: Feature completed.