Managing personal Outlook.com account settings, security, and privacy
Follow these steps immediately to secure the account and address the unwanted Xbox profile:
- Secure the Microsoft account
- Go to the Security basics page and sign in.
- Select Review activity and check the Recent activity and Unusual activity sections.
- For any sign‑ins or actions that are not recognized, expand the item and choose This wasn't me or Secure your account as shown in the guidance.
- Return to the Security basics page and select Change password. Set a strong, unique password that is not used on any other site.
- Check for other security changes
- Go to the Advanced security options page (linked from Security basics).
- Review sign-in verification methods and remove any phone numbers, email addresses, or methods that are not recognized:
- Expand each verification option and select Remove, then Remove again to confirm.
- Only remove methods that clearly do not belong; if all security info is removed, the account enters a 30‑day restricted state where changes are limited.
- Remove attacker-added aliases
- Go to the Manage how you sign in / alias management area of the Microsoft account (for example via Your info → Edit account info).
- Remove any email aliases or sign‑in addresses that are not recognized by selecting Remove next to them.
- Use the hacked/compromised account flow if needed
- If there is any sign that the attacker still has access or if sign‑in becomes blocked, use the official recovery flow described in How to recover a hacked or compromised Microsoft account and follow the guided steps to secure the account and verify ownership.
Once the Microsoft account is fully secured (password changed, security info and aliases cleaned up), the attacker’s ability to use the attached Xbox profile is effectively cut off because they will no longer control the underlying account or its sign‑in methods. Any further Xbox‑specific cleanup (gamertag, console settings, purchases) is done from within the secured account or via Xbox support, but that is outside the provided guidance.
References:
- What happens if there's an unusual sign-in to your account
- Removing a sign-in verification method
- Change the email address or phone number for your Microsoft account
- How to recover a hacked or compromised Microsoft account
- My account got hacked. - Microsoft Q&A
- My account got hacked - Microsoft Q&A
- Need help with hacked microsoft account - Microsoft Q&A
- my microsoft account has been compromised - Microsoft Q&A