Outlook.com: "Help us secure your account" block — recovery form submitted, no response after 24 hours

Question

Service: Outlook.com personal account (paid, with Microsoft 365 subscription).

Scenario: When I try to sign in, I am shown a "Help us secure your account" page stating unusual activity was detected and that I must verify my identity and change my password. On the "Verify your account" step, the two options offered are a masked alternate email address and a masked phone number. I no longer have access to either — the phone number is an old one from before I changed providers, and the alternate address is not one I can open.

I selected "I don't have these any more" and completed the account recovery form (ACSR). I submitted it from the same computer and home network I have always used with this account, with no VPN, and provided a working contact email address that I can access.

In the form I supplied:

• four email addresses of contacts I have recently written to
• four exact subject lines of messages I recently sent
• the approximate creation date of the account and the country of use

Result: More than 24 hours have passed and no response has arrived at the contact email address I provided. I have checked the junk/spam folder and confirmed the contact address was entered correctly. No rejection message and no approval message.

Environment: Windows, current version of Microsoft Edge/Chrome, home broadband connection in Switzerland, same device previously used with the account.

Troubleshooting already done: read the official guidance on filling out the account recovery form; used the Sign-in Helper; avoided repeated sign-in attempts so as not to extend any temporary block; did not resubmit the form while waiting.

Question: Is a response beyond 24 hours normal, or does silence indicate the submission failed to register? Should I wait longer before submitting a second form, and is there anything specific that improves the outcome of a second attempt when the first receives no reply at all?

Answer 1

Thank you for the information.

Since you do not have 2FA and you do not have access to your linked verification methods for a password reset just as you mentioned, the only way to recover the account is through the account recovery web form.

Please go to account.microsoft.com > click "Forgot Password" > select "I don't have any of these" > then you will be redirected to the ACSR form.

Also, you mentioned that you didn't receive the results from the account recovery webform. Please try submitting another request via Incognito/InPrivate window and using different devices and network services. Then please check your "Contact email" inbox, junk, and spam folders.

You'll need to keep trying until you're verified by Microsoft, and you can do this up to 2 times every 24 hours.

If your recovery request is successful, you will be asked to wait 30 days in order to update your security info and recover your account.

During this time, you will not be able to sign in to sites or services with your account.

If your Microsoft account recovery request was not granted, please review this link for tips on improving your chances of a successful recovery: https://support.microsoft.com/office/dc56c3e3-dff0-4ed5-8edb-60290eea6b53

Please be advised that Microsoft Support will not be able to grant you access to your account.

Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards,

Darhyl

Answer 2

Hi Darhyl, thanks for looking at this.

To my knowledge two-step verification was not switched on — I never used the Authenticator app and was never issued recovery codes. I only ever signed in with my password (or pin in my widows), on phone was always signin, and codes were requested occasionally rather than every time.

My last successful sign-in was on phone was about one week ago (24.07.2026) on windows was before 3 weeks ago, on the same Windows laptop and home network I used for the submission. i have alot of important things on this email, and the passowrd the same, never changed since long time, but i was in country for three weeks, where i needed vpn to us on the mobile phone, so the outlook thought it was not me. after i came home , i was surrprissed, that my outlook on my computer windows also deactivate.

On my recovery submission I have not received any response at all — neither success nor "insufficient information" — after more than 24 hours. Does that silence itself tell you anything?

Answer 3

Hey there! Nice to meet you!

Just to confirm, since you mentioned that you have a recovery phone number linked to your account, did you have two-factor authentication (2FA) active on the account?

Important: If you have an active 2FA, ACSR will inform you that your recovery request will be ignored. If you only receive a message that the recovery request is either successful or indicates insufficient information, this means that 2FA is disabled.

Also, may I know when was the last time you successfully signed in to your account?

Best regards,

Darhyl