Your Microsoft & Apple Account Security Checkups

Two Accounts, One Simple Goal

Microsoft and Apple use different words for the same handful of protections. If you understand the goal, the buttons are easy to find on either one.

• A strong sign-in: turning on two-step or two-factor so a password alone is not enough.
• Trusted devices: knowing which phones and computers are signed in, and removing old ones.
• Recovery: making sure you can get back in if you forget your password or lose your phone.
• Activity: checking the log for sign-ins you did not make.
• App access: cleaning out old apps and app passwords.

Opening Your Microsoft Security Page

Let us start with the Microsoft half. Everything here begins at one web page. Once you can get to it, the rest is just reading and clicking.

• On a computer, open a web browser and go to account.microsoft.com.
• Sign in with the email and password you use for Windows or Outlook.
• Click Security at the top. This is your home base for everything in the Microsoft half.

Microsoft Sign-In Activity

Microsoft keeps a log of every sign-in to your account, successful or not, with the date, the rough location, and the device. Reading it takes a couple of minutes and can catch a break-in early.

• On the Security page, look for Sign-in activity and open it.
• You will see a list, newest at the top, showing when and roughly where each sign-in happened.
• Each entry says whether it was successful and what kind of device or app was used.

Turning On Microsoft Two-Step Verification

Two-step verification means that even if a thief learns your password, they still need a second step, usually a code or a tap on your phone. It is the single strongest thing you can turn on for your Microsoft account, and it is free.

• On the Security page, open advanced security options.
• Find Two-step verification and choose to turn it on.
• Follow the steps to pick how you get the second step, then finish to the end until it says it is on.

The Microsoft Authenticator App

The Microsoft Authenticator is a free app for your phone. Instead of waiting for a text, you just tap Approve when you sign in. It also works when you have no cell signal, and it can even let you sign in without typing a password at all.

• Shows an Approve or Deny prompt when someone tries to sign in to your account.
• Can display a fresh code every 30 seconds if you prefer typing one.
• Offers a passwordless sign-in, where the phone approval replaces the password entirely.

Microsoft Recovery Information

If you ever forget your password or lose your phone, Microsoft uses your recovery email and phone number to prove it is you and let you back in. Keeping these current is what saves you from being locked out.

• On the Security page, look for where you manage how you sign in and your security info.
• Confirm the recovery email is an address only you can open.
• Confirm the phone number is one you still have.

Microsoft App Passwords

Once two-step is on, an older program that cannot handle the second step may need a special one-time password called an app password. Most people never need one, but it is worth knowing about and checking.

• An app password is a long, computer-made password used by one older program, such as an old email or calendar app.
• You create it in your account's advanced security options, under app passwords.
• Each one is used by a single program; you do not type it every day.

Your Microsoft Devices

Microsoft keeps a list of the computers and phones tied to your account. Cleaning out ones you no longer own is smart housekeeping and closes a door you forgot was open.

• On the Security page, or under your account's Devices, view the list of computers and phones.
• Each shows a name and often the last time it was seen.
• Look for anything you sold, gave away, or no longer use.

Opening Your Apple Sign-In & Security

Now the Apple half. Your Apple Account, which many folks still call an Apple ID, is the key to your iPhone, iPad, photos, and everything you have bought from Apple. Here is where its safety settings live.

• On an iPhone or iPad: open Settings, tap your name at the very top, then tap Sign-In & Security.
• On a computer: open a web browser and go to appleid.apple.com, then sign in.
• Both roads lead to the same settings; use whichever is easier for you.

Apple Two-Factor Authentication

Two-factor authentication is Apple's name for a second check when you sign in. When you sign in on a new device, a code pops up on a device you already trust, and you approve it. On most Apple accounts this is already on, but let us make sure.

• In Sign-In & Security, look for Two-Factor Authentication.
• It should say On. If it does, you are in good shape.
• If it is off, tap to turn it on and follow the simple steps.

Trusted Devices and Phone Numbers

Apple relies on your trusted devices and trusted phone numbers to send you those sign-in codes. Keeping this list clean and correct means the codes reach you and only you.

• In Sign-In & Security, scroll down to see your list of devices.
• Tap any device to see details, or to Remove from Account if it is one you no longer own.
• Removing an old iPhone or iPad here stops it from receiving your codes.

Apple Recovery Key and Recovery Contact

Apple gives you two extra safety nets so you are never permanently locked out. A recovery contact is a trusted person who can help you back in. A recovery key is a special code you keep yourself. You can use either or both.

• In Sign-In & Security, find Account Recovery.
• Add a trusted family member or friend as a recovery contact.
• If you ever get locked out, they can give you a code to help you back in. They cannot see any of your data.

Apple App-Specific Passwords

Just like Microsoft, Apple has a special one-time password for older programs that cannot handle two-factor. Apple calls it an app-specific password. Most people never need one, but here is how it works.

• It lets a non-Apple program, such as an older email app, sign in to your Apple Account safely.
• You create it at appleid.apple.com, in the Sign-In & Security area, under App-Specific Passwords.
• Each one is tied to a single program.

Cleaning Up 'Sign in with Apple'

You have probably signed in to apps and websites using the Sign in with Apple button. It is a handy, private way to log in. Over time the list grows, so it is worth reviewing and trimming the ones you no longer use.

• In Sign-In & Security, tap Sign in with Apple (sometimes shown as apps using your Apple Account).
• You will see every app and website where you used that button.
• Tap any one to see details.

Strong Passwords and Passkeys on Both

No matter how good your two-step is, it all rests on a strong, unique password underneath. Both Apple and Microsoft also offer passkeys, a newer way to sign in with no password at all.

• Give each account a long, unique password; never reuse the same one.
• Apple's built-in Passwords app and Microsoft's tools can save and even suggest strong passwords for you.
• Your email password is the master key; make it the strongest of all.

Fake Apple and Microsoft 'Tech Support'

The most common attack on folks with these accounts is not a hacker in a basement; it is a phone call or pop-up pretending to be Apple or Microsoft support. Once you know the pattern, it loses all its power.

• A pop-up on your screen shouts that your computer has a virus and gives a number to call. It is fake; do not call.
• A caller says they are from Microsoft or Apple and have detected a problem. Neither company calls people this way.
• They pressure you to install software that gives them remote control, or to buy gift cards, or to read them a code.

Microsoft and Apple, Side by Side

Here is the whole guide on one page. The same five jobs, the words each company uses, and where to find them. Keep this to jump straight to what you need.

Make It a Yearly Habit

You do not need to fuss over this every week. Once a year, pour a cup of coffee and run this short checkup on both accounts. Everything stays locked down with very little effort.

• Microsoft: check sign-in activity and confirm two-step is on.
• Microsoft: confirm recovery email and phone are current.
• Microsoft: remove old devices and unused app passwords.
• Apple: confirm two-factor is on and trusted numbers are correct.
• Apple: review trusted devices and remove ones you no longer own.
• Apple: confirm your recovery contact or recovery key is in place.

What's in the 27-page PDF

• The Microsoft half: sign-in activity, two-step, the Authenticator, recovery info, app passwords, and devices
• The Apple half: two-factor, trusted devices and phone numbers, recovery key and recovery contact, and app-specific passwords
• Cleaning up the 'Sign in with Apple' list of apps
• How the two companies do the same job in slightly different words
• Spotting fake Microsoft and Apple 'tech support' scams

Why I wrote this

I write these as printable handouts because a guide you can keep in a drawer beats a web page you have to find again. No jargon, no judgment, no rushing. If you'd rather have someone sit beside you and go through it together, that's a flat $99 first visit with the 30-day follow-up included — serving Portage County from Atwater, Ohio. — Bill