2FA Doom Loop when logging in

Question

I am signing into my account after a long time not needing to.

I get a dialogue saying "Action Required. Security defaults are enabled to keep your organisation secure. Follow the prompts to set up a multifactor authentication method to protect your account."

When I click "Next" I get a dialogue saying "Great job! You have successfully set up your security info. Choose "Done" to continue signing in." and it displays my phone number.

When I click "Done" however, it takes me back to the previous "Action Required" dialogue. I cannot progress through authentication.

Answer 1

Hi JSandtonian,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft community.  I apologize for the inconvenience you're experiencing. Based on the information provided, you are not able to log in your account due security defaults enabled.

• Are you logging in from a different location or different device?
• Is your account a user account or a global administrator account?
• If it's an admin account, do you have multiple admins in your organization

Could you kindly try the steps below depending on your situation:

• If the affected account is an end user account, please contact your IT admin to assist you reset the MFA settings from the admin portal, this clear up all conflicts and you should be able to register for MFA again and access your account. The admin can follow the steps given in this link:  Manage authentication methods for Microsoft Entra multifactor authentication - Microsoft Entra ID | Microsoft Learn
• If it's an admin account and you have multiple admins in your organization, please ask any of them to assist you.
• If this is the only admin account, I suggest that you contact the Data Protection team, as they are the only support team authorized to verify and reset accounts. As we are from the community team, we are not authorized to reset any user or admin accounts.

Please find Data Protection team's contact number, from the attached link:  Customer service phone numbers - Microsoft Support

During the call, you'll need to provide information about your subscription, such as: Your company name, billing information, phone number, and alternate email address.

Here are some tips to help you navigate the IVR system more effectively:

IVR: How can I help you?

Expected answer: I can't log in to the M365 admin center

IVR: Is there another administrator?

Expected answer: No.

IVR: Are you a Global Admin?

Expected answer: Yes.

IVR: Have you tried resetting your password?

Expected answer: Yes

IVR: Please let me know the error message you see on the screen when you try to log in.

Expected answer: We don't have the 2nd factor.

IVR: Would you like to be connected to a technician?

Expected answer: Yes.

During your phone call, please make sure to clearly state that you need help from the Data Protection team to access your admin account using the sample replies for conversations I shared above. This allows you to create a ticket through the call, so you don't have to use a link to log in to your account, and then a support representative will get back to you when you've successfully created the ticket.

In the meantime, it may be helpful to read this article about common scenarios: Microsoft Authenticator FAQs - Microsoft Support

Please note that our initial response may not resolve the issue immediately. However, with your cooperation and more detailed information, we can work together to find a solution, if you encounter any challenges, the steps clear, let me know.

Thank you for your valuable time and cooperation.

Sincerely

Albert |Community Moderator