Authentication Reset Issue

Question

Authentication Reset Issue

Quinn 0

Hello, I’m looking for guidance on recovering access to a business account.

I am the sole admin on the account, but the authenticator setup did not complete correctly. As a result, I’m currently locked out and cannot access the admin email or perform any recovery steps. I’ve been attempting to resolve this for about a week.

I’ve tried contacting support through several channels. When calling the business support line, I wasn’t able to complete identity verification because I no longer have access to the registered email. I also attempted to use the chat option, and a supervisor reached out but the call was disconnected while I was on hold. I later created a second business account in order to submit a support ticket explaining the situation. Support informed me that the data privacy team would follow up, but I have not yet received a response.

I understand these processes are in place for security, but I’m unsure what the next steps should be when an admin is locked out and standard verification methods cannot be completed.

Is there an alternative path for recovering access to a business account when the sole admin is unable to use MFA or access the associated email? Any guidance on how to escalate this appropriately would be greatly appreciated.

Quinn 0 Reputation points

2025-12-01T18:08:32.1933333+00:00

I cannot create another support ticket for some reason - don't have the option in the admin portal - can only contact the non helpful AI commercial line.
Quinn 0 Reputation points

2025-12-01T18:08:51.31+00:00

Here was my original post:

Hello, I have another business account where I am the only admin. The authenticator setup didn't go through properly so now I am logged out of the business account as the only admin. I tried calling business support, but could not speak to a human - the AI was not understanding after repeatedly saying that I don't have access to the email, the AI was saying the ticket information would be sent to the email I couldn't access. Now I have been trying to get back into our business account for a week, and the business is being impacted.

I used the individual chat and raised the issue that I couldn't get to the a human to discuss or escalate, and they finally had a supervisor call me. The supervisor explained that I would be on hold for 2 minutes, and I waited for 2 HOURS with no response. I went back to the chat and am now waiting on a call back.

Now I had to sign up for another business account to try and reset this one. The account is for another domain/business account that I can't access. I then opened a ticket for this issue and explained everything in the new business account I created. I was contacted by support, and told the data privacy team would call me or email me in the next 10 mins to set up time (this was wednesday and haven't heard back). I called sales today to actually speak with a human, and then transferred my to the data team where I waiting for 2 hours before the call was randomly disconnected. Then called sales again to talk to support and waited on the line for an hour and am still waiting.

What is going on at Microsoft? This is a Sev 1 issue that has clear SLAs. It was marked as Sev C. Why is it so hard to speak to someone and why are we expected to wait on the phone for hours without any idea of if someone will EVER pick up on the other end?

Any ideas on other ways to resolve this?

1 answer

Your answer

Quinn 0 Reputation points

2025-12-01T18:08:32.1933333+00:00

I cannot create another support ticket for some reason - don't have the option in the admin portal - can only contact the non helpful AI commercial line.
Quinn 0 Reputation points

2025-12-01T18:08:51.31+00:00

Here was my original post:

Hello, I have another business account where I am the only admin. The authenticator setup didn't go through properly so now I am logged out of the business account as the only admin. I tried calling business support, but could not speak to a human - the AI was not understanding after repeatedly saying that I don't have access to the email, the AI was saying the ticket information would be sent to the email I couldn't access. Now I have been trying to get back into our business account for a week, and the business is being impacted.

I used the individual chat and raised the issue that I couldn't get to the a human to discuss or escalate, and they finally had a supervisor call me. The supervisor explained that I would be on hold for 2 minutes, and I waited for 2 HOURS with no response. I went back to the chat and am now waiting on a call back.

Now I had to sign up for another business account to try and reset this one. The account is for another domain/business account that I can't access. I then opened a ticket for this issue and explained everything in the new business account I created. I was contacted by support, and told the data privacy team would call me or email me in the next 10 mins to set up time (this was wednesday and haven't heard back). I called sales today to actually speak with a human, and then transferred my to the data team where I waiting for 2 hours before the call was randomly disconnected. Then called sales again to talk to support and waited on the line for an hour and am still waiting.

What is going on at Microsoft? This is a Sev 1 issue that has clear SLAs. It was marked as Sev C. Why is it so hard to speak to someone and why are we expected to wait on the phone for hours without any idea of if someone will EVER pick up on the other end?

Any ideas on other ways to resolve this?

Answer 1

Hi @Quinn,

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A forum.

I completely understand how challenging this situation must be, especially when you’re the only admin responsible for your account.

Restoring access requires working with the Data Protection team, as they are the only team authorized to perform MFA resets and administrator account recovery. This process ensures proper identity verification and compliance with security protocols. The team can only be reached through a support ticket, which guarantees secure handling of your case.

Since you already have an active support ticket, please be assured that the case is in the system and is being handled by the appropriate team. The extended wait time typically means your request is still in the processing stage or awaiting the next step in the queue.

The next step involves the Data Protection team conducting internal checks and gathering the necessary information. Once this step is complete, the team will contact your client to verify and confirm that they are the legitimate owner of the tenant. You may also send an email to the support team specifying the exact time you can receive a call, and your working hours, so the data protection team can plan and schedule the calls effectively.

Because this process involves multiple layers of security validation, it may take some time to complete. We kindly ask for your patience and understanding, as these measures are essential to protect your organization’s data.

Additionally, please note that forum moderators do not have access to user account settings and cannot assist with logging in, resetting passwords, or changing access rights. While we do not have access to internal systems or administrative tools required to resolve account-specific or backend-related issues, we’ll continue doing our best to support you within the scope of our responsibilities.

I hope this clarifies the process and provides reassurance that the case is progressing. Please feel free to reach out if you have any further questions or need additional assistance in the meantime.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

Quinn 0 Reputation points

2025-12-01T19:53:19.97+00:00

My ticket has been "Open" since wednesday. I was supposed to receive a call back from the data team to schedule something on wednesday and I still have not heard from them. How do I know that the Support agent doesn't know that I was never called? Also, I cannot even open a new support ticket to ask to escalate or ask for an update (they marked it as Sev C, when it is clearly A)
Lia V 3,385 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-12-01T21:57:25.8666667+00:00

Hi @Quinn,

Thank you for your response.

I truly empathize with the inconvenience caused by the lack of timely response. This is not the experience we want for our customers.

To provide clarity, I'd like to explain how severity levels work: Severity A is available to customers with paid support plans such as Premier/Unified or Professional Direct. These plans guarantee faster response times and 24/7 support for urgent problems. In contrast, Severity C does not include priority escalation.

I genuinely wish I could assist you further, but as a moderator, I don’t have access to the necessary tools or permissions to dig deeper into this issue. A helpful next step would be to add a note to your existing support ticket, so the team is aware of your current situation and can give it the attention it needs. Here’s how to do it step by step:

Go to the Microsoft 365 admin center: https://admin.microsoft.com and sign in with your admin credentials.

Navigate to the “Support” section: In the left-hand menu, select “Support” > “View service requests.”

Select your ticket: Click on the support ticket you want to update.

Add a note or comment: Look for an option like “Add comment,” “Update,” or “Provide additional information.” This is where you can type your note or upload relevant files.

Submit your update: After entering your note, click “Send” or “Submit” to ensure it’s added to the ticket.

I truly appreciate your patience, understanding, and cooperation throughout this process.

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Authentication Reset Issue

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