Not receiving code to authenticator after acquiring new phone

Question

I recently changed phones(iPhone) and no longer have the old device. Every time I've attempted to sign into my 365 business premium account, the code is sent to the authenticator app on my new device and I cannot see it. I've tried all the suggestions on the help page but its a loop because I can't make any a progress without signing in. This has been a literal nightmare for two weeks and counting.

I hope someone can help because MS doesn't have any support in place. The vicious cycle is beyond frustration.

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Hey there,

I get how exhausting it can be when something that should be simple ends up taking days to fix.

What’s happening here is that your Microsoft 365 account is still tied to the Authenticator app on your old phone, and since that device is gone, your new phone isn’t showing the code because it wasn’t linked properly during setup.

The app doesn’t automatically transfer unless you backed it up and restored it through iCloud. To fix this, you’ll need to reset your multi-factor authentication (MFA) settings.

If your account is managed by an organization, the admin can do this from the Microsoft 365 Admin Center by selecting your user profile and resetting your authentication methods.

If you’re the only admin, you’ll need to go through Microsoft’s account recovery process, which can be started from the sign-in page by clicking “Can’t access your account?” and following the prompts.

Quick question, do you remember if you had backup enabled for the Authenticator app on your old iPhone?

That could help restore your codes.

Let me know and I’ll Walk you through the next step.

Regards, Aron