Providing Lock Screen password to new owner of computer?

Question

I sold a personal laptop which I did a complete factory reset on. When I shipped it, the laptop would power up to the setup screen so the new owner could enter their own password. Buyer has emailed me three weeks later saying he has locked the computer and needs the password to unlock it. Since it is reset, is there any issue with providing the lock screen password to the new owner. I also went to my Microsoft account and deleted this computer which I assume will prevent automatic file backup. Very cautious about giving any passwords to a third party.

Answer 1

Debbie, thank you for your reply.

I am glad I could help!

Give back to the Community. Help the next person who has this issue by indicating 'Yes' if the reply above solved your problem.

Best regards,

Gunasekar N

Answer 2

It does. Thank you for your help.

Ken

Answer 3

Hello Debbie,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Community and I'll be glad to assist you today.

No, it is not recommended to share any of your personal information, like email addresses or passwords, with an unknown person.

Based on the description provided, it seems that you have already reset the PC to factory defaults, and your information might have been removed from the device completely. The person who bought it may have set up the device with their account password and might have forgotten it.

Just ask the person to sign in with their own password or select the "forgot password" option on the sign-in screen to reset it. If they are unable to do so, ask them to reset the PC to factory defaults again and set it up. To do that,

1. On the Windows sign-in screen, press and hold the Shift key while you select Power > Restart​​​​​​​.
2. Upon reboot, select Troubleshoot > Reset this PC > Remove Everything and Proceed with Local re-install.

I hope this information helps. If you have any questions, please let me know and I will be happy to help you further.

Best regards,

Gunasekar N