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Is registering a device agreeing to give the company or service access to my device? | Registering a device gives your device access to your organization's services and doesn't allow your organization access to your device. |
I have a Windows Mobile device, and the Microsoft Authenticator on Windows Mobile has been deprecated. Can I continue authenticating using the app? | All authentications using the Microsoft Authenticator on Windows Mobile will be retired after July 15, 2020. We strongly recommend that you use an alternate authentication method to avoid being locked out of your accounts. Alternate options for enterprise users include:
Alternate options for personal Microsoft account users include:
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Can I take screenshots of my one-time password (OTP) codes on the Android Authenticator? | Beginning with release 6.2003.1704 of Authenticator Android, by default all OTP codes are hidden anytime a screenshot of Authenticator is taken. If you want to see your OTP codes in screenshots or allow other apps to capture the Authenticator screen, you can. Just turn on the Screen Capture setting in Authenticator and restart the app. |
What data does the Authenticator store on my behalf and how can I delete it? | The Authenticator app collects three types of information:
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What are the codes in the app for? | When you open Authenticator, you'll see your added accounts as tiles. Your work or school accounts and your personal Microsoft accounts will have six or eight digit numbers visible in the full screen view of the account (accessed by tapping the account tile). For other accounts, you’ll see a six or eight digit number in the Accounts page of the app. You'll use these codes as single-use password to verify that you are who you say you are. After you sign in with your username and password, you'll type in the verification code that's associated with that account. For example, if you're Katy signing in to your Contoso account, you'd tap the account tile and then use the verification code 895823. For the Outlook account, you’d follow the same steps. Tap the Contoso account tile. After you tap the Contoso account tile, the verification code is visible in full screen. |
Why does the number next to the code keep counting down? | You might see a 30-second timer counting down next to your active verification code. This timer is so that you never sign in using the same code twice. Unlike a password, we don't want you to remember this number. The idea is that only someone with access to your phone knows your code. |
Why is my account tile gray? | Some organizations require Authenticator to work with single sign-on and to protect organizational resources. In this situation, the account isn't used for two-step verification and shows up as gray or inactive. This type of account is frequently called a 'broker' account. |
What is device registration? | Your org might require you to register the device to track access to secured resources, such as files and apps. They also might turn on Conditional Access to reduce the risk of unwanted access to those resources. You can unregister your device in Settings, but you may lose access to emails in Outlook, files in OneDrive, and you'll lose the ability to use phone sign-in. |
Do I need to be connected to the Internet or my network to get and use the verification codes? | The codes don't require you to be on the Internet or connected to data, so you don't need phone service to sign in. Additionally, because the app stops running as soon as you close it, it won't drain your battery. |
I only get notifications when the app is open. If the app is closed, I don't get notifications. | If you're getting notifications, but not an alert, even with your ringer on, you should check your app settings. Make sure the app is turned on to use sound or to vibrate for notifications. If you don't get notifications at all, you should check the following conditions:
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I'm using the verification codes in the app, but how do I switch to the push notifications? | You can set up notifications for your work or school account (if allowed by your administrator) or for your personal Microsoft account. Notifications won't work for third-party accounts, like Google or Facebook. To switch your personal account over to notifications, you'll have to re-register your device with the account. Go to Add Account, select Personal Microsoft Account, and then sign in using your username and password. Your organization decides whether or not to allow one-click notifications for your work or school account. |
Do notifications work for non-Microsoft accounts | No, notifications only work with Microsoft accounts and Azure Active Directory accounts. If your work or school uses Azure AD accounts, they might turn off this feature. |
I got a new device or restored my device from a backup. How do I set up my accounts in Authenticator again? | If you turned on Cloud Backup on your old device, you can use your old backup to recover your account credentials on your new iOS or an Android device. For more info, see the Backup and recover account credentials with Authenticator article. |
I lost my device or moved on to a new device. How do I make sure notifications don't continue to go to my old device? | Adding Authenticator to your new device doesn't automatically remove the app from your old device. Even deleting the app from your old device isn't enough. You must both delete the app from your old device AND tell Microsoft or your organization to forget and unregister the old device.
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How do I remove an account from the app? | Tap the account tile for the account you’d like to remove from the app to view the account full screen. Tap Remove account to remove the account from the app. If you have a device that is registered with your organization, you might need an extra step to remove your account. On these devices, Authenticator is automatically registered as a device administrator. If you want to completely uninstall the app, you need to first unregister the app in the app settings. |
Why does the app request so many permissions? | Here's the full list of permissions that might be asked for, and how they're used by the app. The specific permissions you see will depend on the type of phone you have.
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Why does Authenticator allow you to approve a request without unlocking the device? | You don't have to unlock your device to approve verification requests because all you need to prove is that you have your phone with you. Two-step verification requires proving two things – a thing you know, and a thing you have. The thing you know is your password. The thing you have is your phone (set up with Authenticator and registered as an MFA proof.) Therefore, having the phone and approving the request meets the criteria for the second factor of authentication. |
Why aren't all my accounts showing up when I open Authenticator on my Apple Watch? | Authenticator supports only Microsoft personal or school or work accounts with push notifications on the Apple Watch companion app. For your other accounts, like Google or Facebook, you have to open the Authenticator app on your phone to see your verification codes. |
Why can't I approve or deny notifications on my Apple Watch? | First, make sure you've upgraded to Authenticator, version 6.0.0 or higher on your iPhone. After that, open the Microsoft Authenticator companion app on your Apple Watch and look for any accounts with a Set Up button beneath them. Complete the setup process to approve notifications for those accounts. |
I'm getting a communication error between the Apple Watch and my phone. What can I do to troubleshoot? | This error happens when your Watch screen goes to sleep before it finishes communicating with your phone. If the error happens during setup: Try to run setup again, making sure to keep your Watch awake until the process is done. At the same time, open the app on your phone and respond to any prompts that appear. If your phone and Watch still aren't communicating, you can try the following actions:
The next time you try to approve a notification on your Apple Watch, keep the screen awake until the request is complete and you hear the sound that indicates it was successful. |
Why isn't the Microsoft Authenticator companion app for Apple Watch syncing or showing up on my watch? | If the app isn't showing up on your Watch, try the following actions:
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My Apple Watch companion app crashed. Can I send you my crash logs so you can investigate? | You first have to make sure you've chosen to share your analytics with us. If you're a TestFlight user, you're already signed up. Otherwise, you can go to Settings > Privacy > Analytics and select both the Share iPhone & Watch analytics and the Share with App Developers options. After you sign up, you can try to reproduce your crash so your crash logs are automatically sent to us for investigation. However, if you can't reproduce your crash, you can manually copy your log files and send them to us.
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What is the App Lock feature, and how does it help to keep me more secure? | To keep your one-time passcodes, app information, and app settings more secure, you can turn on the App Lock feature in Authenticator. Turning on App Lock from the Authenticator Settings page asks you to authenticate using your PIN or biometric every time you open Authenticator. This feature offers extra protection, the way you approve your notifications in Authenticator won't change. Note Unfortunately, there's no guarantee that App Lock will stop someone from accessing Authenticator. That's because device registration can happen in other locations outside of Authenticator, such as in the Company Portal app or within Android account settings. |
Why am I getting notifications about my account activity? | Activity notifications are sent to Authenticator immediately whenever a change is made to your personal Microsoft accounts, helping to keep you more secure. We previously sent these notifications only through email and SMS. For more information about these activity notifications, see What happens if there's an unusual sign-in to your account. To change where you receive your notifications, sign in to the Where can we contact you with non-critical account alerts page of your account. |
While signing in to my work or school account using the default mail app that comes with iOS, I get prompted by Authenticator for my security verification information. After I enter that information and return to the mail app, I get an error. What can I do? | This most-likely happens because your sign-in and your mail app are occurring across two different apps, causing the initial background sign-in process to stop working and to fail. To try to fix this, we recommend you select the Safari icon on the bottom right side of the screen while signing in to your mail app. By moving to Safari, the whole sign-in process happens in a single app, allowing you to sign in to the app successfully. |
My one-time password (OTP) codes are not working. What should I do? | Make sure the date and time on your device are correct and are being automatically synced. If the date and time is wrong, or out of sync, the code won't work. |
The Windows 10 Mobile operating system was deprecated December 2019. Will the Microsoft Authenticator on Windows Mobile operating systems be deprecated as well? | Authenticator on all Windows Mobile operating systems will not be supported after Feb 28, 2020. Users will not be eligible for receiving any new updates to the app post the aforementioned date. After Feb 28, 2020 Microsoft services that currently support authentications using the Microsoft Authenticator on all Windows Mobile operating systems will begin to retire their support. In order to authenticate into Microsoft services, we strongly encourage all our users to switch to an alternate authentication mechanism prior to this date. |