Why does Microsoft direct to this site?

Question

Why does Microsoft direct to this site?

john richard 0

I received an email from Microsoft account team that there was "Unusual sign in activity". Seemed legit after verifying that the addressee was from accountprotection.microsoft.com. After clicking on the link asking to review recent activity, I realized I don't recall any Microsoft logins I had connected with this email. I became suspicious and ignored inputting the stated email address.

Then today, I received another security alert, indicating that someone has access to your account with the same email. I called the 800-865-9408 to get help, but was redirected to aka.ms/pwr which seemed legit. I filled out the 5 dollar form, got no help because they can't fix Outlook locked accounts, than i find out this site has a hidden fee. A 90 dollar a month subscription I never agreed to, nor was told about, but this site told my 95 dollars, and wouldn't tell me when according to them I agreed to a hidden fee. This is nothing short of a scam, but what is the big kicker, Microsoft support sends you there. BE WARE.

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Answer 1

Chloe-L 12,780 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi john richard,

Thank you for sharing your experience. I understand how concerning and frustrating this situation must have been, especially when it involved security alerts and unexpected charges.

To help clarify and avoid confusion for others, it’s important to note that emails sent from accountprotection.microsoft.com about unusual sign‑in activity are legitimate Microsoft security notifications. However, Microsoft will never require payment, subscriptions, or credit card details to secure or recover a Microsoft or Outlook.com account. Microsoft does not charge fees for account security assistance or locked account recovery.

For safety, users are strongly advised to:

Sign in directly at the official Microsoft account site to review security activity
Avoid entering payment details on third‑party “support” websites
Contact their bank or card provider immediately if an unexpected charge occurs
Change their Microsoft account password and review recent sign‑in activity

Please note that this is a user-to-user support forum. Moderators, contributors including external Microsoft employees cannot directly intervene in Microsoft product features or access back-end systems. Our role is limited to providing technical guidance on reported issues, requests, or ideas only.

Your feedback is appreciated, as it helps raise awareness for others. If you have additional questions or need help understanding Microsoft’s official account security process, feel free to reply here. I will be happy to help further.

john richard 0 Reputation points

2026-04-30T02:44:02.14+00:00

To be clear, Chloe, Microsoft support, which is automated sent me to this site, even sent me a text with the link. The question is why???
Chloe-L 12,780 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-04-30T23:01:33.9933333+00:00
Hi john richard,

Thank you for your clarification. I completely understand why this caused confusion, and I appreciate you raising the question.

To clarify, this site (Microsoft Community) is Microsoft’s official user‑to‑user support forum, where people can ask questions and receive guidance from moderators and other users. It is commonly referenced in automated flows because it provides general guidance and support information for personal Microsoft accounts.

However, it’s important to reassure you that:

This community is completely free to use

It does not require any payment, subscription, or credit card details

No official Microsoft support channel will ask you to pay to secure or recover a personal Outlook/Microsoft account

So when Microsoft directs users to resources like this, it is simply to provide safe, free guidance and help, not to direct anyone to paid services.

If any step in your experience involved payment or a subscription, that part did not come from Microsoft itself, even if it may have appeared connected at the time.

I understand how this situation could raise concerns, and you did the right thing by questioning it. Thank you as well for bringing this up. It really helps keep others informed.

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Why does Microsoft direct to this site?

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