Missing emails in hotmail account

Question

I have a hotmail account that I access through outlook. I am unable to access my emails between 20 Feb 2025 and 20 Feb 2026. I have checked on line and through the app but they have disappeared. I did not delete them or move them. There are a number of critical emails that I need to urgently access during this period. please help.

Answer 1

Dear Jenny Fisher, 

Please note that this is a user-to-user community. As moderators, we have limited access to internal development details. Our role is to direct users to the appropriate support channels and resources. While we cannot provide backend analysis, we will do our best to assist within our responsibilities. 

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A forum. I understand you are having problems with Hotmail emails missing for the date range 20 Feb 2025 through 20 Feb 2026, and they are missing in both Outlook on the web and the Outlook app. I understand that you have already tried the AI given Answer but did not work. Please try these additional workarounds:  

• Recover messages that were permanently removed from Deleted Items 
  • Even if emails are no longer in Deleted Items, Outlook may still allow recovery from the server-side Recoverable Items area. In Outlook on the web, open Deleted Items, then select “Recover items deleted from this folder,” select the needed emails, then Restore.  
• Check for mailbox rules that could have moved or deleted mail automatically during that year 
  • Rules can move or delete messages automatically. In Outlook on the web, go to Settings > Mail > Rules. Temporarily disable rules that move/delete messages, then check whether the missing date range appears again after refresh.  
• Verify automatic forwarding is not enabled (can divert mail away from the mailbox) 
  • In Outlook on the web, go to Settings > Mail > Forwarding and ensure forwarding is turned off.  
• If you suspect compromise, reset the session state to stop ongoing automated actions 
  • If a third party had access previously, they can set up mechanisms that affect mail flow. Use Sign out everywhere in Microsoft account Advanced security options, then sign back in and recheck mail folders.  
• If the messages aren’t in any folder (including Deleted Items/Junk) and you don’t see them under “Recover items deleted from this folder,” then there is no other way to restore them from Outlook/Outlook.com. Microsoft’s recovery options only cover items still present in Deleted Items/Junk or in the Recoverable Items area; if the items aren’t there, they’re no longer available to restore. At that point, the only remaining option is to contact Outlook.com Support so they can review the mailbox state and confirm whether any recovery is possible; if Support also cannot locate the items, unfortunately the messages cannot be restored.
  • Visit Contact - Microsoft Support     
  • Type a brief description of your issue in the search box    
  • Scroll down to the bottom > select Sign in to contact support    
  • Log in to your personal Microsoft account.     
  • Under Products & Services, select "Other Products"; Under Categories, select a suitable Category.   
  • Click "Chat with a support agent in your web browser" (during business hours) 

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Answer 2

Hi Jenny Fisher,

I hope you are doing well ! I just want to check if you have had a chance to test the steps earlier? Please let me know if they helped resolve the issue or if you are still experiencing any difficulties. I am here to assist you further.

Best Regards

Answer 3

If you are unable to access emails from your Hotmail account between the specified dates, there are a few steps you can take to try and recover them:

1. Check your Deleted Items and Junk Email folders: Sometimes emails can be accidentally deleted or filtered as junk.
2. Review your filtering options: It's possible that a filter has been applied that hides certain emails. You can check this by going to the View settings in Outlook and ensuring no filters are set that might exclude those emails.
3. Search for emails: Use the search function in Outlook to look for specific keywords or senders that might help locate the missing emails.
4. Check your account settings: Ensure that your account settings haven't changed, which might affect the visibility of your emails.
5. Contact Microsoft Support: If the emails are still missing, it may be necessary to reach out to Microsoft Support for further assistance, as they may be able to help recover lost emails.

Unfortunately, if the emails were not backed up or saved elsewhere, recovery may be limited.

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References:

• How do I recover my old email messages, my contacts and everything else I had in Outlook? - Microsoft Q&A
• Stopped receiving emails on my account. - Microsoft Q&A