Technology & AppsCommunity discussion

Locked out because the recovery email is an old email

Anonymous

Account recovery feels straightforward until the recovery address belongs to a school, an old job, or an inbox nobody can open anymore. Then the password reset sends a message to the very place that is causing the problem. It is a good reminder that knowing a password is only part of keeping access. Which accounts would cause the biggest headache if you lost them tomorrow? Updating recovery details is dull work, but doing a few important accounts at a time seems much easier than dealing with a lockout during an already stressful day.

Replies 4

Had a similar experience? Tell us what helped.

Replying as Anonymous
Anonymous

Start with the main email account, since it often controls recovery for everything else. Keep recovery codes somewhere private and accessible without that account.

Anonymous

Please do not share passwords, security answers, or recovery codes in replies. General descriptions of what helped are enough to make this discussion useful.

Anonymous

It helps to review recovery details before leaving a school or workplace. Once that inbox closes, proving access can become much more complicated.

Anonymous

Check whether the recovery phone number is still yours as well. An old number can make a seemingly complete recovery setup much less useful.