Hotmail reset password

Hello Mike,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Community. My name is Arjay and I'm happy to help.

I'm sorry you're experiencing this problem. I understand how important recovering your account is to you.

When did you last successfully sign in to your Microsoft account? If you have not logged into your account for more than two years and it has been closed due to inactivity, you will not be able to use the Account Recovery Form to recover your account. Reference: https://support.microsoft.com/office/7c0a9fa7-0982-b7c6-fd72-df852b63699f

Did you have two-factor authentication (2FA) active on the account? If you do have the 2FA active, are you able to access the second factor of authentication? If so, please try resetting your password. Detailed steps on resetting your password can be found in the following support article: https://support.microsoft.com/office/eff4f067-5042-c1a3-fe72-b04d60556c37

Important: The account recovery form can only be used if two-step verification isn't turned on.

If you did not have 2FA active on the account, and the account was not deleted due to inactivity, you will need to try the Account Recovery Form: https://account.live.com/acsr

Detailed steps on how to use the Account Recovery Form can be found here: https://support.microsoft.com/office/b19c02d1-a782-dee6-93c3-dc8113b20c42

Microsoft takes account security very seriously, that's why Account Recovery is an automated process with no human influence. If you don't have the correct information, you may not be able to get through account verification using the Recovery Form.

The Account Recovery Form requires adequate information to prove that you are the owner of the account. The Account Recovery Process can be a time-consuming process, but providing as much info as possible from the start of the process will increase the possibility of being verified by the automated process. You'll need to keep trying until you're verified by Microsoft.

Remember to use a familiar device from which you've frequently accessed your Microsoft account, as well as a familiar location. Microsoft will review your responses and respond within 24 hours. If you are verified, instructions on how to log back into your account will be sent to you, and if you are not verified, you will need to submit the Account Recovery form again. You can do this up to 2 times every 24 hours.

It's important to note that Microsoft Support will not be able to grant you access to your account, you will be sent back to the Account Recovery pages that have been linked above.

If your Microsoft account recovery request was not granted or was unsuccessful, please click the attached link for more information: https://support.microsoft.com/office/dc56c3e3-dff0-4ed5-8edb-60290eea6b53

While it might not be the outcome you are looking for, if you’re unsuccessful in recovering your account, then you will need to create a new Microsoft account. You can do that by clicking this link: https://signup.live.com/

Let me know if you need more help.

Regards, Arjay O.

Hi Mike,

I am an independent advisor, trying to help other users in the Community with my experience in Microsoft products. Please note that I am a user like you and don't work directly for Microsoft.

As mentioned above, Microsoft takes account security very seriously, that's why Account Recovery is an automated process with no human influence.

I understand this situation can be frustrating, but I would recommend continuing to use the account recovery form as your primary method of regaining access to your account. You can attempt to use the form up to two times per day, so please don't hesitate to give it another try.

If, however, you've exhausted all options and are still unable to regain access due to not having access to your backup email and the account recovery form not providing the necessary assistance, I regret to inform you that it may not be possible to recover your account. In this case, your best course of action would be to create a new Microsoft account using the following link: https://signup.live.com/

I understand that this may not be the outcome you were hoping for, but creating a new account will allow you to continue using Microsoft services. If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out.

Kindly note that this is a user-to-user forum, we are users helping other users, we aren't Microsoft employees and neither are we Microsoft agents.

Best regards, Amadeusz

thank you. It would be more helpful if I could work through this with a person.