Lost the Authenticator of work account

Here’s the correct and safe way to recover access to your Microsoft 365 / E5 work account when you’ve lost Microsoft Authenticator.

Because this is a work account, only your organization’s admin can fully reset the 2FA settings. But you do have a few options depending on what’s enabled.

✅ 1. Try Your Backup 2FA Methods (If Any Were Set Up)

Before going to the admin, try:

• SMS text code

• Email code

• Recovery phone number

• Backup Authenticator (iPad, old phone, etc.)

If any of these show up under “Other ways to sign in,” choose one.

If nothing else is listed → move to the next step.

✅ 2. Use Microsoft’s Account Recovery Page (Works Only If Admin Allowed It)

Go here:

https://aka.ms/mfasetup

or

https://aka.ms/mysecurityinfo

If it asks for your Authenticator and you have no backup → you’ll see a “I can’t use my Microsoft Authenticator app right now” link.

Click it.

If your organization allows self-service reset, it will walk you through recovery.

If the org blocks it, you’ll get stuck — then you need admin help (next step).

✅ 3. Contact Your Organization’s Global Administrator

For Azure AD / M365 work accounts, the ONLY guaranteed way is:

✔ A Global Admin must

reset your MFA or temporarily disable MFA for your account.

They can do it in:

Microsoft 365 Admin Center

Users → Active users → Select your account → Authentication methods → Require re-register MFA

or

Azure Portal (Entra ID)

Users → Authentication methods → Require re-register multifactor authentication

This forces your account to go back through the MFA setup flow, letting you add the Microsoft Authenticator again on your new phone.

✅ 4. If You Are the Admin (E5 Tenant Owner)

If this is your own business tenant and you lost access:

You must sign in with any admin account still registered.

If you are the only global admin in the tenant, you must use Microsoft’s admin recovery:

https://aka.ms/admin-recovery

They require proof of domain ownership (TXT record verification).

❗ Important Notes

Microsoft cannot bypass MFA for work accounts because the tenant controls it.

Only an admin in your organization can reset it.

Losing Microsoft Authenticator without backup means MFA must be reset.