Email recovery

rasoul ghollamzadeh 0 Reputation points
2026-10-20T15:45:44.1233333+00:00

My Outlook.com account was recently compromised, resulting in the loss of nearly ten years of important academic and professional emails (2017–2026).

I have secured my account, changed my password, enabled two-step verification, and removed all unauthorized inbox rules. The security issue appears to be resolved, but my original emails and attachments are still missing, including from Recoverable Items.

Could you please help me contact the appropriate Microsoft technical support team to investigate whether these messages can still be recovered?

Recovering my correspondence is extremely important to me.

Thank you for your assistance

Outlook | Web | Outlook.com | Email
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  1. AI answer

    2026-10-20T15:46:26.54+00:00

    Contact Outlook.com Support through the signed-in Help menu immediately, but messages absent from Recoverable Items after the 30-day recovery window are generally no longer recoverable.

    Contact the appropriate Outlook.com support team

    On a computer:

    1. Sign in to Outlook.com using the affected account.
    2. Select Help on the top menu bar.
    3. Enter Compromised account—missing email not in Recoverable Items.
    4. Review the suggested result, then scroll to Still need help?
    5. Select Yes and follow the offered support/contact option. This is Microsoft’s documented support route for Outlook.com mailbox issues.^1^

    If that route does not offer an agent, use Microsoft’s compromised-account support page and select I need to talk to a customer support agent under Need more help? The sign-in helper may also offer an agent based on the account details entered.^2^

    In the request, provide:

    • The approximate date and time the messages disappeared.
    • The date the compromise was discovered.
    • Several example senders, recipients, subjects, and approximate message dates.
    • Confirmation that Deleted Items and Recover items deleted from this folder are empty.
    • A request for confirmation whether any mailbox-side recovery remains available.

    Do not send your password, two-step verification codes, or recovery code.

    Recovery limitation

    For Outlook.com:

    • Messages are automatically removed from Deleted Items after 30 days.
    • Messages removed from Deleted Items remain recoverable for 30 days.
    • Recovery from Recoverable Items must be performed using a computer, not an Outlook mobile app or mobile browser.^1^

    Because you have already checked Recoverable Items, the normal self-service recovery path is exhausted. A closely matching Outlook.com case states that Microsoft Q&A participants and moderators cannot access personal mailboxes, submit backend restoration requests, or escalate cases to engineering; only the official support channel can review whether any additional option exists.^3^

    While waiting, preserve any remaining copies in desktop mail archives, exported mailbox files, old devices, backups, or recipient/sender mailboxes. Avoid deleting or reorganizing anything else in the affected mailbox.

    References

    1. Email is missing from your Outlook.com inbox | Microsoft Support
    2. How to recover a hacked or compromised Microsoft account | Microsoft Support
    3. Hacker purged inbox & deleted items – Need backend restoration of deleted emails - Microsoft Q&A
    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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