Microsoft Permanently Locks Hacked Account After Security Changes, Erasing 25 Years of OneDrive Data and Purchases

A streamer named Joshua Kane has permanently lost access to 25 years of personal digital content after his Microsoft account was compromised. The attacker changed the account’s security details, allowing them to take full control and lock out the original owner.

Along with the account itself, Kane lost all files stored in OneDrive, including family photographs of his son as an infant, as well as years of purchased games, applications, and other digital services. Microsoft acknowledged that the profile had indeed been hacked and belonged to Kane, yet support staff refused to restore access.

According to the company, once an attacker modifies security settings, internal policies prohibit employees from manually returning control to the original owner. The lock has been declared permanent, and the associated files are now inaccessible even to Microsoft engineers.

The corporation further explained that content stored in OneDrive cannot be extracted because of the service’s encryption architecture and strict privacy protections. Kane was told to purchase his games and services again on a newly created account.

The story rapidly spread across social media, with Kane’s post receiving more than two million views within 11 hours. Numerous other users began sharing comparable cases of permanent account loss following similar takeovers.

While Microsoft’s formal rules allow account suspension when fraudulent activity is suspected, the temporary measure can easily become a lifetime ban once an attacker updates recovery information. Kane himself admitted that he had not adequately protected the account.

The incident serves as a stark reminder that two-factor authentication is essential and that storing the only copy of important files in the cloud does not constitute a true backup strategy. Unlike a physical device, cloud storage cannot be stolen with a flash drive, yet a single successful compromise can permanently sever the owner’s access.