Managing personal Outlook.com account settings, security, and privacy
Use the official recovery flow immediately:
- Start the Microsoft Sign-in helper. It asks for the email address or phone number and either provides self-help steps or offers the chance to talk to an agent.
- Before changing any password, run a full malware scan on the PC:
- Open Windows Security
- Go to Virus and threat protection
- Select Scan options > Full scan > Scan now
- If sign-in is still possible anywhere, change the password from the account security flow. If sign-in is no longer possible, use the password reset/recovery flow.
- If access is restored, review account settings that attackers commonly change:
- connected accounts
- forwarding
- automatic replies
- If Microsoft reports unusual sign-in activity, go to the Security basics page, open Review activity, and mark suspicious activity as This wasn't me or Secure your account.
If the account is blocked because of unusual sign-in activity, use the Outlook.com unblock flow through the Sign-in Helper.
If recovery and unblocking both fail, use Microsoft support contact options from the sign-in and recovery pages. Support agents are not allowed to send password reset links or directly change account details, but the official support path is the next step.