Sign in code notifications

Question

I am getting multiple genuine Emails from Microsoft to say they have received my request for a security code and not to worry if I didn’t ask for this as someone may have tried to sign in using my email by mistake.

I know the emails are genuine (I checked the sender) but am concerned about the number of these I am getting. Am I right to be concerned and should I be doing anything about it?

Answer 1

Hello there,

If you received an email or text alerting you to an unusual sign-in attempt on your account but you haven't done anything different with your account recently, follow these steps to review your account security:

Sign in to the Security basics page for your Microsoft account.

Select Review activity to check for any unusual sign-in attempts on the Recent activity page. If you see account activity that you're sure wasn't yours, let us know and we can help secure your account—if it's in the Unusual activity section, you can expand the activity and select This wasn't me. If it's in the Recent activity section, you can expand the activity and select Secure your account.

If you think someone else may have accessed your account, go back to the Security basics page and select Change password. Create a strong password that you can remember, and don't share it with anybody else.

What happens if there's an unusual sign-in to your account https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/account-billing/what-happens-if-there-s-an-unusual-sign-in-to-your-account-eba43e04-d348-b914-1e95-fb5052d3d8f0

Hope this resolves your Query !!

--If the reply is helpful, please Upvote and Accept it as an answer–

Answer 2

What you can and should do is to:

1. Ensure you have strong enough password. Min 12chars with lower-upper-number-special characters. It is preferred to use password managers that can generate strong passwords for you and fill forms when necessary, so you don't have to memorize all your complex passwords.
2. Enable multi-factor authentication in your Microsoft account. You can use Microsoft Authenticator mobile app to approve/deny sign-in requests.

If you complete these two steps, you can be safe. This will not reduce the amount of sign-in attempts, because these calls are automated by bots and your email is listed in attacker's databases. What you can do is to follow steps above to reduce the chances that someone cracks your account.