Account inactive for years but still received 6-digit code when I tried to sign in

[Trey3]

Hello,
I have looked at several threads on here and have not found a good answer. I have an old Dropbox account that I lost access to back in the beginning of 2019. I lost access to it because the email associated with it no longer exists. I also know for a fact that any device that was once logged into it also does not exist. Any of those devices would be long gone.

There is no way any activity could be associated with the account, however today I went to enter the email and password, and it still proceeded to send the 6 digit code to the email that no longer exists.

Is this a thing with inactive accounts where sometimes it will still give you the option to sign in? I’m asking because at this point I just want the files to be deleted on the account, and I am not sure if that would be the case in this situation. I am not interested in gaining access to the account. I’m just concerned about my privacy because I had sensitive documents and personal information on there, and I’m hoping that maybe Dropbox still ended up deleting files, even though the option to sign in is still there.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[Hannah · Accepted solution]

Hey @Trey3, thanks for reaching out about this.

So, basically, you're getting a prompt that a 6 digit code was sent to your email, but have no access to the email, to check whether it's been sent or not, right?

In that case, can I send you an email to the address associated with your Community profile here, so we can take a deeper look into this?

Let me know.

[Trey3]

Yes that works

[Hannah]

Thanks, Trey, I just sent you an email, so we can continue there. 🙂

[draxsynsmommy]

hello, same thing with me... I am not able to log in and change email as it sends a 6 digit code to an email I no longer have access too, is there any way to go around that? my old email is literally my name 

[Megan]

Hi @draxsynsmommy, I hope you're doing well!

Without access to the email address, I am afraid that there's not much you can do. It wouldn't be possible to read this code, therefore access the account.

Is it not feasible to recreate the email address and attempt to login again?

Let me know more!

[cuki]

I have same problem can you help me pls

[Rich]

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@cuki wrote:

I have same problem can you help me pls

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If you're trying to sign in to your Dropbox account and it's sending a one-time security code to an email address that you no longer have, it won't be possible to gain access to the account without access to the email associated with it. Your best option is to contact the mail provider and see if they can help you get the email address back.

• https://help.dropbox.com/account-access/lost-email-access

[jensu]

Hi,

same problem here, I do remember my password (it is a good long strong one!), but I have no longer access to the email I used years ago when I registered with Dropbox. I cannot sign in and immediately change my details as the help page suggests because I am forced to go through this additional security step with the 6 digit code that is sent to my inaccessible email.

What's more I do still have access to my files through an API token I generated so can still list, read & write files in my Dropbox - but am unable to log in and update my details (like email!!) or just use the web interface.

Does the fact that I can still access my files go some way to prove that I am the original/legitimate user and am just trying to update my email details? Anyone able to work with me/help out, please?

[Megan]

Hi @jensu, welcome to our Community! 

When you say that you still have access to your files,through an API can you clarify if you are able to download them? If so, then we would suggest you download them, and create a new Dropbox account. 

Without access to the email address you won't be able to sign in to your account. Your best option to get into the account would be to contact the email provider and see if the email address can be reactivated.

I hope this helps!