Shock, horror – I’m not going to argue with Microsoft’s latest bit of nagging in Windows 11, as this pop-up is justified

Acer Aspire 14 AI laptop display showing the Windows 11 login screen
(Image credit: Future / Jasmine Mannan)

  • Windows 11 has a new pop-up in testing, but this one could actually be useful
  • It reminds those with a Microsoft account who haven’t set up their recovery access that they need to do so, to help defend against hackers
  • Also, if you don’t have the recovery process sorted, you could run into thorny issues should you forget your password

Microsoft has another new piece of nagging in testing for Windows 11, although this particular reminder is a useful one (as opposed to the adverts that many of its ‘recommendations’ really are).

This is a change to nudge people to ensure that the recovery mechanism for their Microsoft account is in place, and it’s appearing in a fresh Windows 11 preview for the Dev and Beta channels (build 26120.3380 of 24H2).

The pop-up, or toast notification as it’s officially known, reminds the Windows 11 user to add a secondary email, or a phone number, to their account for recovery purposes.

This will only be presented to people who are signed into their Microsoft account on the PC, and don’t have said recovery feature enabled (as you might guess).


Hacker vulnerability

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Analysis: A step to defend your account against getting hacked

Why is this a good kind of nudge, as opposed to the more annoying efforts (which border on adverts, or are actually ads, like the one for PC Game Pass)? Mainly because it’s genuinely important that you perform the recovery setup for your Microsoft account.

For the uninitiated, the recovery procedure comes into play when you’ve forgotten your password and therefore can’t get into your account, to enable you to recover access. Of course, Microsoft needs to be sure that it’s you – and not a nefarious hacker – trying to gain access to the account, and so needs a method of verifying that which a hacker wouldn’t be able to avail themselves of. Namely that secondary email address, or better still, your smartphone, which can provide a verifying factor, and then allow you to reset the forgotten password to something else.

I’d argue, then, that Microsoft isn’t out of line in prompting the Windows 11 user to sort this out, as it is important to do so (you could say the same about the recent prod to backup your PC, too, though that’s a little different in my book).

Anyway, in this instance, Microsoft’s nag gets a pass from me, but apparently it is still possible to turn it off should you wish. As Windows Latest observes (without confirming it’s the case), the pop-up should be disabled by turning off all of the ‘Additional Settings’ sliders under System > Notifications in the Settings app.

At any rate, it’s worth remembering that this is only rolling out in the early stages of testing at the moment, and it may not reach the release version of Windows 11. I’d imagine it’s likely to make the cut and come to all Windows 11 users eventually, though.

You may also like...

Darren is a freelancer writing news and features for TechRadar (and occasionally T3) across a broad range of computing topics including CPUs, GPUs, various other hardware, VPNs, antivirus and more. He has written about tech for the best part of three decades, and writes books in his spare time (his debut novel - 'I Know What You Did Last Supper' - was published by Hachette UK in 2013).

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Read more
Young woman using laptop, looking annoyed
Microsoft’s latest bit of nagging in Windows 11 might come from a good place, but it’s seriously annoying some people
AOC Agon Pro AG276FK gaming monitor tilted slightly to the side, showing the Windows desktop screen
Windows 11 users get ready for more ‘recommendations’ from Microsoft – but I’m relieved to say these suggestions might actually be useful
Copilot imagery from Microsoft
Fed up with Copilot in Windows 11? Microsoft pushing a new keyboard shortcut for the AI isn’t likely to help, and it could mess with your desktop mojo
Windows 10 Fail
I have good news and bad news about Windows 11 24H2’s new update: it introduces nifty features and fixes... but also includes another ad
Windows 10
Microsoft gets into the spam game by again emailing Windows 10 users to prod them to upgrade to Windows 11 – is the nagging going too far now?
Woman gaming on a computer at home
Microsoft crowbars new ‘recommendations’ for PC Game Pass into Windows 11, so excuse me while I start beating my anti-advert drum (again)
Latest in Windows
girl using laptop hoping for good luck with her fingers crossed
Windows 11 24H2 seems to be a massive fail – so Microsoft apparently working on 25H2 fills me with hope... and fear
A woman sitting in a chair looking at a Windows 11 laptop
It looks like Microsoft might have thought better about banishing Copilot AI shortcut from Windows 11
Using Zipped files and folders in Windows 11
Windows 11 should soon be faster at extracting files from compressed ZIPs – and it’s about time, frankly
Xbox Wireless Controller
Microsoft is adding a powerful new feature for using Xbox controllers with Windows 11
Woman disgusted by her laptop
Embarrassing Windows 11 bug that deleted Copilot app is now fixed – but will anyone outside of Microsoft care?
Student sat at a desk with a laptop in a dormitory looking at a mobile phone
Windows 11 could eventually help you understand how fast your PC is - as well as offer tips for making your PC or laptop faster for free
Latest in News
girl using laptop hoping for good luck with her fingers crossed
Windows 11 24H2 seems to be a massive fail – so Microsoft apparently working on 25H2 fills me with hope... and fear
ChatGPT Advanced Voice mode on a smartphone.
Talking to ChatGPT just got better, and you don’t need to pay to access the new functionality
Insecure network with several red platforms connected through glowing data lines and a black hat hacker symbol
Multiple H3C Magic routers hit by critical severity remote command injection, with no fix in sight
Apple Watch Ultra 2 timer
The Apple Watch is getting a sleep alarm upgrade it probably should have had 10 years ago
Nikon Z5
The Nikon Z5 II could land soon – here's what to expect from Nikon's rumored entry-level full-frame camera
Google Pixel Watch 3
Google Pixel Watches hit with delayed notifications, crashing, and performance issues following Wear OS 5.1 update