Outlook email sign in request

Question

I have been receiving authentication request linked to my www.outlook.com email account from an unknown source. I continue to receive them despite logging out from all devices and even changed my password.

Sender tries login from different location - Germany, US, Canada etc.

How can Microsoft help me stop this menace?

Regards

Girish

Answer 1

Hello

If someone knows your email address, even without knowing your password, they can still use the "forgot password" option to trigger an authentication ask.

You can consider doing the following:

Go to your Microsoft account online https://account.live.com> Sign in > Your info > Sign in preference. Add an alias - You have two options here: Create new: this will allow you to use the native domain outlook.com to create a new alias. Add existing: this will allow you to add a 3rd party email address, such as yahoo, gmail, as long as they are not already associated with another Microsoft account. Once added, make this new alias your primary alias, do NOT delete the old alias. Then at the bottom, click on "Change sign in preference". On the next page, uncheck the box for the old alias. This means, from now one, the old alias cannot be used to sign into your Microsoft account, but it can be still used to receive emails, etc.

Answer 2

Microsoft can’t stop attackers from attempting to sign in, but it can protect the account and reduce risk. The sign-in prompts being received are a sign that someone is repeatedly trying (and failing) to access the account from different locations.

Take these steps:

1. Review recent sign-in activity
   1. Go to the Security basics page and sign in.
   2. Select Review activity to open the Recent activity page.
   3. Check entries under Unusual activity and Recent activity:
      • For any sign-in that definitely wasn’t done by the account owner, expand it and choose:
        • This wasn’t me (under Unusual activity), or
        • Secure your account (under Recent activity).
   4. Follow the guided steps to secure the account.
2. Change password and security info
   1. From Security basics, select Change password and set a strong, unique password not used on any other site.
   2. Ensure all security contact info (phone, alternate email) is up to date so Microsoft can continue to send alerts and verification codes if needed.
3. Enable and strengthen two-step verification (if not already)
   • Register for two-step verification (multi-factor authentication) so that even if an attacker guesses the password, they still cannot sign in.
   • If sign-in attempts continue but fail at additional verification, this indicates the attacker may know the password; in that case, change the password again and verify security info on the Security info page.
4. Understand that repeated failed attempts can continue
   • Unsuccessful sign-ins (for example from Germany, US, Canada) may simply be attackers or bots guessing passwords.
   • These attempts can’t be fully blocked at the service level, but as long as the password is strong and multi-factor authentication is enabled, they should not be able to access the account.
5. Monitor sign-ins going forward
   • Periodically review the Recent activity or My Sign-ins pages for any successful sign-ins from unfamiliar locations, browsers, or operating systems.
   • If any suspicious successful sign-in is found, immediately change the password and update security settings on the Security info page.

If there is concern that someone has already accessed the account, also review Outlook.com settings (rules, forwarding, and connected apps) after securing the account to ensure no malicious rules or forwarding have been set up.

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References:

• What happens if there's an unusual sign-in to your account
• Check the recent sign-in activity for your Microsoft account
• View your work or school account sign-in activity from My Sign-ins
• Help protect your Outlook.com email account