How do I access Gmail without phone verification?
Hi, everyone.
Leo Notenboom here for Askleo.com, this is a frustratingly common problem
with unfortunately frustratingly common results.
Let's go right to the question.
"I got a new phone and phone number some time ago.
I just tried signing into my Google Mail
account, and it wants me to verify who I am by sending a code to the old number.
How do I tell Google my new number?"
So I'm going to go through a number of the options that may be available
for you, but I want to be very clear about something up front.
Chances are
these options have already been shown
to you, and you're here because none of them work.
If none of them work, it is possible I'll even say that it's
likely that you may not be able to get back into your account.
This is one of the easiest ways to lose access to your account forever.
So let's back up a little bit and talk
about what your options might be and how you can prevent this in the future.
Naturally, preparation is key.
It's absolutely fundamental to being able
to recover your account should you ever need to in a case like this.
Yeah, it's easy to overlook that if you got a new phone with a new phone number
that you need to run around to all the accounts you have where you used
that old phone number and change them all again.
That's hard to remember.
It's hard to do.
It is something that's important that I
don't want to understate how important it is, but it's also very common.
You may not remember that you used this
phone with that account until you run into this situation.
But if you can, when you change your phone
number for whatever reason, think long and hard about all the accounts
that you have associated that phone number with.
If you can, if you have the option of keeping your old phone number on a new
phone, by all means, that's the easiest solution.
But if you can't, if you are getting
a brand new phone number, then do take the time to run around to all
the accounts you can think of, especially your important ones,
and change the phone number associated with those accounts.
Now,
the other part of preparation is simply making sure you have options
when Google asks for verification. One of the things it will say is, you know,
if this isn't one of the options, would you like to try something else?
And it will often bring up a long list
of alternative additional verification methods.
Those are typically methods that you have set up beforehand.
For example, you might have set up a security key.
You might be using two factor authentication.
Your security key can be used as
an alternate form of confirmation that you are who you say you are.
When Google asks for a phone number, you can get a one time security code.
This is an interesting one because it kind
of assumes that you're logged into that account on a different machine.
So it actually gives you the option of getting a security code on that other
machine that you can bring to the current machine to log you in.
You can confirm on a phone or a tablet.
Once again, this assumes you are logged into the account on a phone or a tablet
other than the device you're currently trying to log in on.
You can instruct Google to ask those
devices for confirmation that you should be allowed to sign in.
This is one that I didn't even realize
existed until I was researching this article.
You can use a phone or a tablet to get a security code even if you're not online.
This can be perfect for people who are
facing this problem when they're traveling.
It's a scenario where you end up going
deep into the Android settings of your device.
So I suspect this is probably an Android only option.
But deep in the settings of your Android device, because you have associated
that device with this account, you'll have the option of generating
a code that you can then use to confirm you are who you say you are.
You can use the Google authenticator app
if you've set up Two-Factor authentication to use it,
you don't have to have a phone in order to confirm you are who you say you are
when you're using the Google authenticator app as your second factor for two factor
authentication, you can get a verification code to an email address.
This is something that we've talked about
long and in fact often results in the same scenario we're facing today where
individuals have lost access to that email account and they can no longer retrieve
the codes that are associated with that account.
It's important, therefore, not only to keep your phone number up
to date with your account, but it's equally important to keep your
recovery email addresses up to date with your account.
That way, as long as something is up to date, be it your phone number or your
recovery email address, you'll be able to get a recovery code that.
Allow you back into your account?
I have to include for completeness
the problem we're facing right now, and that is getting a verification code
via mobile phone, regardless of how you are unable
to confirm who you are, getting a recovery code on your mobile
phone is one of the options that Google will offer.
Yes, I get it.
We're here because that particular option doesn't work for you.
But if you are here for other reasons, like not necessarily having an up to date
recovery email address, this is one of the options you might be
able to use if you've set it up beforehand.
Speaking of setting it up beforehand,
one of the things I strongly recommend you do, regardless of whether or not you've
got additional phones or email addresses or other approaches to Two-Factor,
authentication or account recovery, you can print off a set of backup codes.
That's all you need.
Your possession of those backup codes will
then allow you to get back in when Google needs to verify who you are.
Again, you don't need a mobile phone.
You don't need a landline.
You don't need another email address.
But you do need to have saved these codes in a safe place before you need them.
They'll be what allows you back into your account.
Finally, when you've exhausted all of the other
options that I've discussed so far, Google will offer to, quote unquote, get help.
What that means is they will ask you a series of questions about your email.
They might ask you your current last known password, the password before that,
if you know it, what kinds of emails you sent the past few days?
A bunch of things that theoretically only the account holder would know.
They will warn you that this approach could take days.
My sense is they probably have a real
person, at least quickly scanning the application to make sure that what
you're presenting is, in fact, stuff that only the owner would know.
Bottom line is, it doesn't always work.
I hear from people who have carefully
filled out this form to the best of their ability and they still can't get back in.
But I must include it as a straw to grasp at.
And it's important that if you can't get
in any other way, this might be your last straw.
This might be the last thing you can try
before giving up on the account completely.
But do fill out that form to the best of your ability, be as complete as you
possibly can and see if Google can get your account back for you.
And I will say, do not get angry in this form.
I believe that there are options to add additional information.
Don't anger the person who holds the key to your account.
There's no point pissing them off is not going to help
venting on this form is not going to help.
If anything, it's going to do exactly the opposite.
If the person who holds the key to your
destiny is pissed off because of what you said,
of course, they're going to be less likely to take the extra effort to do the extra
legwork to make sure you are who you say you are.
So be polite and be complete and submit that form to the best of your ability
if everything fails.
We've tried all of the options that Google
has offered to you, maybe they haven't offered most of these
things that I've talked about because you didn't have them set up beforehand.
And the things that they do offer to you
just aren't working if they can't be made to work.
You're done.
It's not your account anymore
if you can't use the official account recovery processes
to get your account back, it is no longer your account and it's time
to give up, create a new account and move on.
And yes, if you haven't backed up the contents of your account,
I get it that that will possibly involve loss of data.
That's an argument for making sure your account is backed up and making sure
everything in the account every all the email is backed up.
You could lose your account for any number
of different reasons, be it hackers or other things.
But the bottom line is that if you've got
everything stored only in your account, well, it's only in your account.
That's just one place.
It is not backed up.
Take responsibility for backing up your data henceforth as well.
But if you can't use the official approaches to getting back into your
account, you're not going to be able to get back into your account.
That's the harsh reality.
I know nobody likes that answer,
but it is the harsh reality of where you might find yourself.
So I hope this has given you at least some
things to try and some encouragement to try the two day process,
the multi day process in case Google can get your account back for you.
But please, please, please, if you're seeing this in a scenario where
you are not in this scenario where you are not currently trying to recover your
account, take this as fair warning that you should
prepare, that you should put together all of the recovery approaches that are
viable, that are possible, that are useful for you,
so that you never, ever end up in this situation
for links, for updates, for related comments and more, visit Askleo.com/32209.
I'm Leo Notenboom.
This is Askleo.com.Thanks for watching.