Faulty 'Recent' document list in OneDrive, File Explorer and Microsoft 365

Anonymous
2023-12-04T11:38:15+00:00

I understand there is a bug that engineers are working on and that this 'bug' is a big worry for many of us, ie. I'm seeing a 'Recent' list (shows in my File Explorer and on OneDrive) which includes documents that I did not open recently, and gives wrong dates of when opened. My Microsoft 365 Word files are synced to OneDrive. I use Windows 11.

I came across an additional worry concerning this today. I opened my Microsoft 365 Word and found the faulty 'Recent' list there, too. I clicked on the latest item on the list (which I had, in fact, opened yesterday via Explorer), and I got a message warning me that the file was a potential security risk. This is the main file of a novel I am working on and am doing editing each day. I find I can still open the document via File Explorer with no such warning and the document did seem ok when I opened it this way, but is it safe to do so? I have a deadline to finish my editing and need assurance there is no security problem and that this 'Recent' list problem will soon be rectified.

I have only noticed the wrong 'Recent' list in the past week or two, but there are other threads about this, one I have seen goes back to October with people telling of this same issue. In a later thread (in November) we were told it's a known bug that is currently being investigated. Please can I have an update on when it is likely to be fixed. Meanwhile, are our files safe to continue accessing and working on?

Microsoft 365 and Office | OneDrive | For home | Windows

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  1. Anonymous
    2024-05-31T09:29:35+00:00

    How on earth has this not been fixed yet? I’m astounded a company as large and successful as Microsoft seemingly has so many better things to do. I am a researcher, and this fault presents a whole array of security risks in various different contexts - not to mention scaring the hell out of me by making me think I’ve lost data, or accessed files I’m no longer cleared to access because they keep appearing at the top of my ‘Recently Accessed’ files list.

    Get your act together Microsoft.

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  2. Anonymous
    2024-03-21T11:18:08+00:00

    I have the same issue that started this morning.

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  3. Anonymous
    2024-03-21T21:28:52+00:00

    People who have Office 2019 and other Office Applications are having the same problem.

    Also, some people are having issues with network recent files.

    There are about 4 or 5 forums on this problem.

    The so-called help you get from Microsoft is in total denial of the issue. It is the users fault.

    https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/all-recent-pinned-file-links-lost/ecb5c00d-1916-4b80-a333-551348443e04?page=1

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  4. Anonymous
    2024-03-19T01:23:03+00:00

    Is there any fix to this yet?

    I have had the same problem for several months. Until recently I was logged into both a business OneDrive account and my personal OneDrive. The recent files and "recommended" lists included files from the business OneDrive which I had never opened belonging to someone else in the organisation. This seems a potential breach of internal security or privacy. I am no longer with that organisation and have disconnected from its OneDrive (which no longer is in use) but have some of its files still showing as recent as well as a seemingly random set of files from my own OwnDrive.

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  5. Anonymous
    2023-12-09T12:51:42+00:00

    Thank you for your reply. I hope it will be fixed soon. My 'Recent' list currently shows 54 files, only two of which were opened recently. I see in another thread that some users have found that turning off the option for 'show files from office.com' rectifies it, but it doesn't for me.

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