Can you recover my Hotmail password?

I've been using Hotmail for years without a problem but suddenly it rejects my password, and when I go to the password recovery option, it doesn't like my zip code or other secret information. I have vital information in my inbox! Can you reset my password for me or tell me the new password?

Dave's Answer:

No, I can't. In fact, there's at least a half-dozen columns I could write about this subject because it's so frequent that I see these requests, even people asking me to recover the password for an account of their "recently deceased best friend" or once even a "doctor" claiming that he had vital patient information on his Yahoo Mail account and could no longer log in. I mean, come ON!

To be fair, some of the queries are probably legit and people really did sign up for these free Web-based services with false birthdays, street addresses, zip codes, phone numbers, etc., as a crude way of protecting themselves from identity theft and just masking their identity a bit.

If you are signing up for an online service of any type, it's really not a good idea to use completely bogus, made-up information because if you ever did lose your password, you couldn't prove you were the account holder and you'd be permanently locked out. If you're not sure whether you used bogus info for a service that's grown to be a key part of your daily routine (like Google's Gmail service, Twitter or your Blogger.com account) then now's a great time to log in and check your profile to ensure that it's legit and accurate. Just in case.

I believe that most of the queries I get, however legit they sound, are from people who are fishing for other people's account passwords so they can mess with things, send out email pretending to be someone else, or even use the accounts for spam or virus attacks. In the 21st century, your high school enemy doesn't TP your house, they hack your MySpace account and send nasty messages to your friends.

Sometimes, though, people do have their passwords stolen, often through either a phishing attack or a keylogger. The former you've probably seen in your email inbox marked as spam, it's the note from eBay, Paypal, a bank you don't know, etc., saying your account has been put on hold and it's imperative you log in immediately and confirm your account information. Just use their handy little link -- to the wrong site, not the actual organization but to a page that looks exactly right but simply logs your account and password when you submit it. Enter your info there and you're hosed: they then promptly log in to your real account and change the password so you lose access to your own account. Game over. Not good.

A keylogger is even more distressing, though you find these more in Internet Cafes overseas than in the USA: it's a small device that is attached directly to a keyboard cable (often where the keyboard plugs into the computer itself, so you can't even see it) and records the last few thousand keystrokes entered. For an enterprising geek, this information can be unwrapped and, with a little bit of effort, everything you typed pulled out and analyzed. Even if you go to secure sites, even if you're connected to your office Virtual Private Network. Sound scary? You bet it is. That's one great reason to be very careful about what computers you borrow to access the Internet when you're traveling.

Anyway, don't ask me to help you recover your password if you lose it. Even if I believed your story - and, as I said, I'm sure some of them are legit - I don't have any special powers and really can't help you out with the problem.

Instead, make sure your profile information is accurate and try to routinely change your password every few months. And be vigilant.

Categorized: Computer and Internet Basics (Article 8016, Written by Dave Taylor)
Tagged: blogger.com, ebay, gmail, hacking, hotmail, myspace, password recovery, phishing, social engineering
Previous: Is there a way to add Google Calendar events without visiting the Web site?
Next: How can I use Google Gmail to manage spam?

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Comments

sir
plez help me how can i send yahoo password to my alternet email address i have lost account informaton so plezz let me know the how to send yahoo password to alternet email address

thanxx
so much

Posted by: aamir at June 11, 2008 1:11 AM

Hi,
Im struggling to get thru my hotmail adress as I have forgotten the password. It sends the details of the password to the very same email adress I cannot access. Can you please help? My email adress is either madala@hotmail.com or nomsamaclare@hotmail.com.

Regards,
pat

Posted by: pat at August 5, 2008 6:49 AM

Hi,
I have got my password stolen and changed by some of my frens and request you to please recover my password.my id is koolnancy@hotmail.com

regards
nancy

Posted by: nancy at January 26, 2009 9:55 AM

Sir
plz help me how can i get my hotmail id's password. My alternet email id is same. and i forget my Secret Answer. Can u help me please in this regards.

thank you soo much.

Posted by: Usman at April 2, 2009 3:45 AM

I would like to recover my hotmail pass word.

Posted by: Gayvorlor G. Korkorlor at May 22, 2009 7:24 AM

okay. i forgot my myspace password and it wont sent to my yahoo account and i cant get onto my myspace now. i hope yu can help retrieve my password please and thaks

thanks
William

Posted by: william gibson at June 11, 2009 12:18 PM

Posted by: ajay at July 14, 2009 2:48 AM

I have been working in hotmail without any problem yesterday suddenly my hotmail sign out now iam givivg password but it is not accepting when i click forget password then he asked secret question but i don't rember it please help me to sign in in my email id because it so important for me

Posted by: Sunjiv Talwar at September 30, 2009 12:17 AM

2day morning i can not login my hotmail account , still i know right password, some one change now it is ask me secret and alternative account but i forget other details , i am using this account 8 years aruond 4 years i am usning same password . so this id is very imp pls help me help me

Posted by: chandra at October 14, 2009 4:02 AM

Posted by: Gary at March 8, 2010 8:33 PM

Hey

i have blocked myself out of my hotmail account and i have also forgot my secret info, i dont use my hotmail account as much but i got sent emails there from business and i really need to get in to there. is there any advice that you could give me please!!

Posted by: Amelia Jade at April 29, 2010 12:20 PM

hello my password was stolen by someone and i wanna get it back quickly plllzzzzzzzzzz help me

Posted by: rola at May 17, 2010 3:51 AM

Hi,
Im struggling to get thru my hotmail adress because a hacker hacked into my e-mail and changed the password. and everything, I can provide with all info when you get into my account.
Please contact me at vicktor09007@hotmail.com

-Thank You very much

Posted by: Viktor Enciso at June 12, 2010 4:24 AM

hiii plzz help me out
as i am totally 4got my ht pw n secret ans n details i provide i jsut made 1 mistake that i didnt put a alternative id n its aprox 5months i have nt checked so i ami blank i really need help coz my doc. which i want r there n i am nt getting help from center plzzz i beg u help me:(

Posted by: maha at July 21, 2010 12:44 PM

hi:
my hotmail account is blocked this morning. i was able to change my password manually as i remember my security question. however, even though i have changed my password after i login is still blocked requiring me to send a verification code to an alternative email address which i have no longer have access on it?
How should i solve this problem immediately as all my client's contact are in there and i need to work with the email account!
Your kind attention is highly appreciated.

Posted by: Annie at June 30, 2011 3:58 PM

Sir i have lost my msn account password.. can u tell me how can i reactivate that account..

Thanks,
Jahanzeb

Posted by: Jahanzeb at August 7, 2011 9:29 AM

can you retrive my password of my email zoranprijedor@live.com

pls contact me on

lollucker1@hotmail.com

Posted by: zzz at October 6, 2011 2:12 PM

I have something to say, now that you mention it, but ...

I do have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but first I'd like to say thank you for all your efforts on this Web site by buying you a cup of coffee!

I do have a comment, now that you mention it!