Outlook: Why was email forwarding suddenly turned on?

Disable the unexpected forwarding immediately and secure the account; Microsoft 365 Family membership does not automatically share personal email or enable forwarding to another family member.[^1^](https://support.microsoft.com/accounts-billing/subscriptions/[Subscription ID] "Microsoft 365 subscription sharing FAQs")

Stop the forwarding

In Outlook.com on a computer:

1. Select Settings (gear icon).
2. Go to Mail → Forwarding. In some versions, this appears as Mail → Forwarding and IMAP.
3. Clear Enable forwarding or select Disable forwarding.
4. Select Save.^2^
5. Go to Settings → Mail → Rules.
6. Delete any rule that forwards or redirects messages, or any rule you do not recognize. Forwarding can be configured either through the main forwarding setting or through an inbox rule.^3^

The red banner should disappear after forwarding is disabled and the settings page is refreshed.

Treat an unexplained change as a security issue

Since you did not configure it, do not assume it resulted from sharing the Family subscription. Complete these checks:

1. Open the Microsoft account Recent activity page from Microsoft account → Security → Sign-in activity.
2. Expand unfamiliar entries and choose This wasn’t me where available. The page provides sign-in time, location, device, browser, or app details for activity during the previous 30 days.^4^
3. Change the account password to a new, unique password.
4. Review the account’s security information and remove unknown recovery addresses, phone numbers, trusted devices, or authentication methods.
5. Enable two-step verification if it is not already enabled.
6. Check Your info → Sign-in preferences for an alias you do not recognize. An alias belongs to the same Microsoft account and shares its mailbox and account settings.^3^

Also ask your wife whether she knowingly configured forwarding while signed into your account or whether your account remains signed in on one of her devices. Knowing her address alone would not establish how the setting changed.

Is this a Microsoft 365 Family problem?

Microsoft states that each Family member’s personal emails, files, appointments, contacts, photos, and notebooks remain separate; joining or sharing a subscription does not give the subscription owner access to another member’s private mailbox.[^1^](https://support.microsoft.com/accounts-billing/subscriptions/[Subscription ID] "Microsoft 365 subscription sharing FAQs")

There are user reports of unexpected forwarding, but Microsoft’s published Outlook.com issues page does not identify automatic forwarding to a Family member as a documented Outlook.com service issue.^5^ Therefore, the available evidence does not establish why it happened in this particular account; an unknown forwarding setting, inbox rule, alias, or unauthorized access must be checked individually.

If forwarding reappears after the account has been secured and no rule exists, use Help in Outlook.com, enter the problem, then select Still need help? → Yes to open an Outlook.com support request.^2^

References

1. [Microsoft 365 subscription sharing FAQs](https://support.microsoft.com/accounts-billing/subscriptions/[Subscription ID])
2. Turn on or off automatic forwarding in Outlook.com | Microsoft Support
3. Microsoft account emails - Microsoft Q&A
4. Check the recent sign-in activity for your Microsoft account
5. Fixes or workarounds for recent issues on Outlook.com