Microsoft plays nanny knows best => Hotmail a/c frozen due to travel

[onlycw]

Hi All

it happened upon arrival at the airport of a neighboring country. No more access. The usual rescue methods failed (cell phone, recovery e-mail "Talk 21" had been turned into a pay-for product by BT). And whenever I tried something, all I got was freaking (language of where I was staying)

I haven't been able to log on again or access the cloud.

Let me just say that due to stupidity, I have all my vital records up there.

Over the months, I forgot the subjects of e-mails and names of folders. (Many times, I had passed the security hurdle only to be stopped by stuff in a language I don't speak).

What now?

What gives Micro$oft the right to safeguard its customers' free Hotmail accounts? Don't they get that people do travel now and then?!?

Any suggestions what to do about this?

Cheers!

[kkerry]

I can't answer for Hotmail but when gmail asks for authentication when you try to log-in from a different computer/location, then it's because you activated their two stage security activation (a good feature).

Could you have enabled a similar feature in Hotmail, maybe in one of those foreign language prompts without realizing it?

[Thaijack2014]

I have been traveling for more then thirty years and used my hotmail account since it came into existence everywhere without fail. There is no way that Microsof blocked your account just because you cross a border. You probably did something wrong, maybe forgot your password, misspelled your user name, whatsoever. If Hotmail is your only account and you can't get your password back, try to contact Microsoft..

[Xircal]

Install ZenMate which is a free VPN. It works with Firefox, Google Chrome and Opera. There's also a mobile version for Android and Apple.

Once installed as an add-on to your browser, change your location to whichever country your hotmail account is valid in by clicking the button you'll find on the toolbar and then click "Change location".

I use Firefox myself, so here's the download link to the add-on for that: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/zenmate-security-privacy-vpn/?src=ss

[colinneil]

Hotmail are a pain in the a..e.

Several months now they keep blocking my e-mail, answer security questions, codes to another account.

I use the same computer, never travel (impossible due to being paralysed) still they kept doing it.

Now i use gmail no problems.

[MKAsok]

I know several people to which this has happened when they changed countries, particularly to countries that have seemingly problematic IP ranges which I suspect are regularly used for brute force attacks. The real problem arose because their reset accounts were other hotmail accounts which were also asking to be verified by the other hotmail accounts, thus leading them to fall into a reset loop of hell.

Be prepared to answer a lengthy and detailed questionnaire about your account. You'll probably need to repeat the questionnaire a few times.

2FA will prevent this from happening in the future.