Unable to Unlock Microsoft Account Due to Verification Method Issue

Question

Hello,

My brother is unable to log in to his Microsoft account. He received the following message:

"Your account has been locked We've detected some activity that violates our Microsoft Services Agreement and have locked your account.

Unlocking your account Choose Next and we'll send a verification code to your phone. After you enter the code, you can get back into your account."

After he entered his email and password and chose "Next," he entered his phone number to receive a security code. However, he then received the following message:

"Try another verification method That verification method isn't working right now. Please try another method."

We have tried multiple times but keep encountering the same issue. There seems to be no alternative verification method provided.

We have also tried the following without success:

Used the Microsoft Account Sign-in Helper.

Followed the steps from the provided article regarding account blocks:

Reviewed the Microsoft account terms of service related to account blocks.

Tried using another verification method connected to the account.

Used the troubleshooter to help identify the problem and provide available support options.

Any guidance or support to resolve this issue would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for your help.

Best regards,

Noor e alam chowdhury

Answer 1

Dear noor e alam chowdhury,

Thank you for posting in the Microsoft community.

I understand that you are trying to help your brother recover his account, and I also know that this account is very important to him.

If he has always been in the area where the account was created, and the account is locked with a "This verification method is unavailable" prompt, he should try using a different device, such as a mobile phone. Switch to mobile data (not Wi-Fi), then log in to account.live.com and attempt to verify with the mobile phone number again.

If the account is shown as locked when trying to log in on any device or with any mobile phone number, this issue may take some time to resolve. He should wait for a week, then log in to the account again and try to unlock it. During this period, he should refrain from sending any more login requests to the server.

The above are the common recovery methods I know. If all these attempts have been made without success, as a last resort, I suggest contacting the live chat support to inquire whether the account can be recovered by submitting more additional information.

Here are the specific steps to contact the live chat support:

（If the following steps don't display as expected, please try changing your browser and doing it one or two more times.）

1. Sign in to this link using any personal Microsoft account：Contact - Microsoft Support. Type "account recovery" into the search box.
2. Click "Sign in and contact support" at the bottom of the page.
3. Under "Products and Services", select "Microsoft 365 and Office".
4. Under "Category", select "Manage Account Security"/ “Technical Support”.
5. Click "Chat with a support agent". Then fill out the contact information so that the online agent can contact you.

Please note:

• Online chat does not support enterprise accounts. If you currently do not have an available personal account, please create a new @outlook.com account to use.
• the online chat service is available during working hours on local business days.

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We appreciate you spend your time working on this issue.  I wish you all the best.

Best Regards,

Ulrica.W - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist