Logged out

Question

I'm locked out of my personal Microsoft account because Microsoft Authenticator is required, but I no longer have access to it. I have a paid Microsoft 365 subscription and need my identity verified so MFA can be reset.

Answer 1

For a personal Microsoft account, the supported recovery path is to replace the security info tied to MFA.

1. Start signing in to the Microsoft account.
2. At the Verify your identity prompt, select I don't have any of these.
3. Follow the prompts to replace the security info.
4. After the replacement is submitted, there is a 30-day wait before sign-in is available again.

If the password is known but the Authenticator app is no longer available, first try any other existing authentication methods on the account. If none are available, the security info replacement flow above is the documented path.

If access to only some security info is lost, sign in to Advanced security options, add a new way to sign in or verify, confirm it with the code sent, then remove the old method. Do not change all security info at the same time, because the account may be restricted for 30 days.

If access to the backup account used by Microsoft Authenticator restore is also unavailable, support agents cannot restore those Authenticator account credentials. The guidance is to use the Microsoft account sign-in helper for the backup account.

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References:

• Troubleshoot Microsoft verification code issues
• How to go passwordless with your Microsoft account
• Restore account credentials from Microsoft Authenticator