We cant log in

Question

Hello,

My global [Moderator note: personal info removed] [Moderator note: personal info removed]@BESTNoviSad.onmicrosoft.com> cant connect to her profile due to two factor authentificaiton. Whenever she tries to log in to the authenticator app its asks for the code from the same app and this also happens when she tries to log in from browser.

We tried changing the global admin and reseting her account but that is not possible because it also asks for the 2 factor verification.

We would like to get human help if possible.

Answer 1

Hi @Dušan Stanimirović

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.  

Please understand that our forum is a public platform, and we will modify your question to cover your personal information including your organization email name in the description. Please notice to hide these personal or organization information next time you post error or some information to protect personal data.    

I have moved the information to the Private message if you need to add any more privacy information please add it in there.

Regarding your issue, if your global administrator is locked out, the next step would be to contact Microsoft Data Protection team directly for assistance as they have tools and processes in place to verify identity and regain access to administrator accounts.      

You can find the appropriate customer service phone numbers at this link: Customer service phone numbers.

Please remember to provide them with your account details and explain the situation. Be ready to provide:     

• The company name used during subscription    
• Billing email address (even if it’s a personal Microsoft account)    
• Payment method details (last 4 digits of the card, billing address)    
• Any subscription ID or invoice numbers from billing email    

When you call the support number, you may hear an introduction of about 30 seconds such as "you can visit the link...". You can ignore this introduction and wait until you are presented with the options. Then press "1" as a business email user, and again "1" for technical help.

To make the process smoother, here’s an example of how to respond when speaking to the automated system (IVR):     

IVR: What kind of problem are you concerned about?     

You:  Authenticator.    

IVR: What kind of product do you use?     

You: Office 365 for business.     

IVR: education or company account?     

You: For companies     

IVR: Are you an administrator?     

You: Yes.     

IVR: Do you have the other administrator in your organization?     

You: No.     

IVR: Do you need a... Service request?     

You: Yes     

These prompts help direct your call to the right support team more quickly, especially when dealing with account lockouts and authentication issues. 

If you still cannot reach to agent, there is still a workaround, you might consider registering for a new tenant by signing up for a trial subscription via this link Compare All Microsoft 365 Plans. This would allow you to create a new tenant following the provided prompts.    

• Follow the guided setup to create a new Microsoft account and a new tenant.
• This tenant will be completely separate from your existing Microsoft 365 environment.

Once set up, you can access the admin console of the new tenant by logging into admin center and follow the steps in this article: Get support - Microsoft 365 admin and submit a support ticket requesting to speak with the Data Protection team on behalf of your previous tenant.    

Include the following details:

• The administrator email address for the locked tenant
• The domain name of the locked tenant
• Any error messages you are seeing
• A description of the authentication or sign‑in issues
• Confirmation that you are the administrator of the locked tenant

Before submitting the ticket, make sure the Support Assistant is turned Off as several customers have reported that when the Support Assistant is enabled, the Contact Support option may not appear.

As shown in the screenshot, simply switch Support Assistant > Off, then enter your issue description. Once disabled, the Contact Support button should appear, allowing you to submit the ticket normally.

Important note:

• This new trial tenant does not provide access to any data, users, or settings from your original locked tenant. It is only intended as a temporary way to contact Microsoft Support.
• Once the issue with your original tenant is resolved, be sure to cancel the trial subscription to avoid any unintended charges. You can do this from the Microsoft 365 Admin Center by going to Billing > Your products and canceling the trial there.

Please remember to cancel the trial subscription once your issue is resolved to avoid any unintended charges.

As forum moderators, we don’t have access to the detailed system needed to troubleshoot this effectively due to privacy and security constraints. To quickly resolve this and regain access, the most effective step is to contact Microsoft Support Team directly. Only they have the ability to help with your Authenticator issue.    

Hopefully it will help work with your issue and if you have any other questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask.   

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Answer 2

what is the phone number for the support

Answer 3

The account is locked in an MFA loop where every action requires the same Microsoft Authenticator method that is no longer accessible. Because changing the global admin or resetting the account also requires that MFA, this must be handled by Microsoft support and, specifically, the Data Protection team.

Use these steps depending on how many admins exist:

1. If there is at least one other Global Administrator
   • Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center with another Global Admin account that can still complete MFA.
   • Follow the documented process to require re‑registering MFA for the affected user so new authentication methods can be configured:
     • See: “Manage user authentication options” in the referenced documentation.
   • After MFA is reset for Iva’s account, sign in again as Iva and set up Microsoft Authenticator and/or additional methods (phone, email) from the Security info page.
2. If Iva is the only Global Administrator, or no other admin can pass MFA
   • This is a tenant lockout scenario. Only Microsoft’s Data Protection team can reset the admin’s MFA.
   • Call Microsoft’s global customer service phone number listed in the “Customer service phone numbers” article.
   • When interacting with the automated system, clearly state:
     • The issue is with “Authenticator” / “two‑factor authentication.”
     • The product is “Office 365 for business” / “company account.”
     • Confirm that this is an administrator account and that there is no other admin.
     • Request creation of a service request and escalation to the Data Protection team to reset the Global Admin’s MFA.
   • Be prepared to provide verification details (tenant domain, admin UPN, business details, contact info). The Data Protection team will validate identity and then reset MFA or add an additional authentication method so the admin can sign in again.
3. If support is hard to reach from the locked tenant
   • As an alternative, create a new temporary Microsoft 365 trial tenant.
   • From that new tenant’s admin center, open a support ticket explaining that the request is for a different, existing tenant where the Global Admin is locked out by MFA.
   • Ask that the ticket be routed to the Data Protection team for MFA reset on the original tenant.
   • After the original tenant is recovered, cancel the trial subscription on the temporary tenant.

Until Microsoft support/Data Protection resets MFA, the affected Global Admin will not be able to bypass the current two‑factor requirement.

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References:

• Common problems with two-step verification for a work or school account
• How to add your accounts to Microsoft Authenticator
• How Do I Regain Access to My Account After Losing Access to Microsoft Authenticator? (Urgent Request). - Microsoft Q&A
• I have a Micrsoft business account and I am the admin and the only user registered under this account. I can't log in because i have replaced my phone and the authenticator doesn't work. - Microsoft Q&A
• I need to reset my mfa methods - Microsoft Q&A
• Severity A Situation - Locked out of global admin account (MFA) - business down - Microsoft Q&A
• Requesting a Tenant Admin MFA Reset - Microsoft Q&A