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When Multi-Factor Authentication is enabled for your account, you may find that you are unable to authenticate to the applications that don’t support Modern Authentication.
In cases like this, app passwords can be used which will bypass the configured two-factor authentication. An app password is a longer password (for security purposes) that is randomly generated. Once again, this password can be used in circumstances where two-factor authentication won’t work.
Before you begin
There’re some notes before enabling app password for accounts in Microsoft 365:
- App passwords aren’t available to users who are enabled for Microsoft Entra multifactor authentication by a Conditional Access policy.
- Security defaults don’t support app password as well. If it is enabled let disable it first.
- App passwords are available only to users who have been enforced for per-user MFA.
Before you try to create an app password, please be aware that your admin has enforced per-user MFA for your account. If you don’t see the app password option, send this article to your Microsoft 365 admin of your company.
How to Create an App Password in Office 365
Once your account has been enforced for per-user MFA by your admin. Below are steps to show you how to create an app password for your Microsoft 365 account.
1️⃣ Login into https://office.com using your account. Navigate to your account icon and select View account link at the top right corner of the page.
2️⃣ A new site opened, select Security info in the left side bar.
3️⃣ The default sign-in method will show here. Select Add Sign-in Method to create an app password.
Tip: You can land on this site by visit https://mysignins.microsoft.com/security-info directly.
4️⃣ Select App password from the pop-up menu and then select Add.
5️⃣ Enter a description so you’ll know exactly what this app password is used for
6️⃣ The next screen will now contain the app password. Copy the password to your clipboard and then select Done.
7️⃣ At the Security Info screen, you’ll now see the two-factor authentication that’s enabled, as well as the app password.
Now, you can use the newly created app password to login using your apps or printers without MFA requirement. You can create multiple app passwords using the given method to authenticate into each apps to protect your real account password.
Not a reader? Watch this related video tutorial:
