Blueyonder Locked out my account.

[ZuuLZuuL]

Virgin member for more than 25 years. Still am, albeit through virgin business now, due to my house not having virgin in the area at the time of buying my house. (Later installed in my area)

Tried to log on a few days ago and it asked for my password? Put it in and it doesn't accept it?

Called customer service, no help at all....

See that others have problems, just desperately need back in. When I go to the Web page, it doesn't allow me to change password details for a Blueyonder account??

Seems as I'd someone in Virgin has just decided to turn off all these accounts? Gutted 

[coenoby]

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@ZuuLZuuL wrote:

Seems as I'd someone in Virgin has just decided to turn off all these accounts? Gutted 

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The problem is that Virgin Media Business account does not cover use of VM email accounts. To keep a VM email account live (so Blueyonder, Ntlworld, Virgin.net, Virginmedia.com email accounts) you need to have a live VM home / domestic broadband account.

According to VM's broadband Terms and Conditions, any email accounts that are linked to a VM home broadband account should be deleted 90 days after the broadband account is closed. The confusion is that in the past they often left these email accounts open much longer, sometimes for years before closing them.

It does seem that VM have finally caught up with your Blueyonder account. When they do they never seem to give any warning before they delete the account.

Sometimes VM just remove access to the Webmail account on their website but leave the mailbox still live for a while.

If you have a Windows 10 or 11 device you could try accessing the account using Microsoft's free email app - Mail. Email apps do not access the account via the webmail service so they can often still work after the webmail account disappears.

You could try accessing the Blueyonder account using that. You just need to set up the account using your Blueyonder address and password. It's a long shot but it might work. If so it will not be a long term solution but it would enable you to download the emails from the account before it disappears completely.

Coenoby

[Sololobo · Accepted solution]

Accessing VM emails through an email client (such as MS Mail) now requires a separate app password, created by following the instructions below:-

 To get the password, follow these steps:

Sign in to My Virgin Media
a. Go to Account settings, then Account details
b. Tap Manage next to Manage your Virgin Media Mail app password under Virgin Media Mail
c. Then, under Virgin Media Mail app password tap Generate new App password and follow the instructions.

A new secure password will be generated for you. Your app password can be used for all apps accessing your Virgin Media mail address. If you create a new app password, you’ll need to update all your existing apps with the new password. Source - https://www.virginmedia.com/help/broadband/manage-email-account

The main difficulty is that your account is a VM business one which does not provide any associated email addresses. In fact VM do not now provide email addresses for any new broadband accounts, business or residential, and as such you may not be able to create an app password at all.

Unless Virgin Media are able to provide you with temporary access to your old email account (unlikely) you should prepare yourself for the total loss of your VM email account and its contents.

[coenoby]

@ZuuLZuuL 

@Sololobois quite right that VM now requires a separate mail app password when you access your email account using an email app.

However, the VM email service works in mysterious ways. 🙄

Before making my post suggesting that you try accessing your Blueyonder account with an email app I tested using one of my VM email accounts which does not yet have an email app password set up.

I created an account for that email address in Microsoft's Outlook email client using the webmail password and as I expected Outlook was able to access the email account without the special mail app password.

I did not mention generating a mail app password in my first post because if VM have simply closed your webmail account because it is no longer attached to a broadband account then I have a strong suspicion that old webmail password would still work with Mail or any other mail app.

However, once you reset the webmail password for your Blueyonder account you will definitely have to generate a mail app password.

I was simply trying to save you the long winded hassle of specifying a non VM email account to use as your Blueyonder password and then generating a mail app password if it was not needed at present.

By the way, just to clarify the instructions that Sololobo posted:

When VM say: "Sign in to My Virgin Media"   you have to do that using the email address and password of the problem Blueyonder account rather that the email address and password of the primary email account of your old VM broadband account if that was a different email address.

By all means follow those instructions, that is what VM say you should do. I was just trying to save you a bit of time if generating a mail app password is not necessary for your Blueyonder account at this time.

Sorry if that has confused anyone,

Coenoby

[ZuuLZuuL]

Thanks so much for your reply. My mother is a residential user, would I be able to get access to her residential account and create a password?

[coenoby]

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@ZuuLZuuL wrote:

My mother is a residential user, would I be able to get access to her residential account and create a password?

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Sadly not.

As I said towards the end of my second post, resetting the password for an email account is done via the My Virgin Media account of that email address. You cannot reset it from another VM account.

You can see if the VM forum team (VM staff) can reset the password for you. In the past they were sometimes able to do that. It was only on the basis that it would allow you to download any important information from your VM email account not to allow you to continue to use the account.

However, I understand that seems to no longer be an option as you have already discovered with the first line customer service team.

As a non VM domestic broadband account holder you only options are:

1. Try accessing the Blueyonder via an email app without setting up a mail app password
2. If that fails, follow the instructions Sololobo posted, generate a mail app password and then try accessing the account via an email app using that mail app password.
3. As a final throw of the dice try using the "Forgotten password link    https://www.virginmedia.com/my-virgin-media/forgotten-details/password?  However, the recent changes VM have implemented mean that is unlikely to be successful in your case.
4. See if the VM forum team can help you.

To be honest though, the chances of you being able to regain access to the email account are not good.

Coenoby

[Sololobo]

@coenoby, 

My apologies for jumping into this thread without considering that email client access may still be possible without having to use a 3rd. party email address and an app password, as stated by Virgin Media. I was not aware it was still an option to do so, but you live and learn.

And why am I not surprised that the implementation of this new system is not fully effective?

[ZuuLZuuL]

I really appreciate all your replies. I've been on a WhatsApp chat with them explaining the situation since 12.30 today and still not had any tech advice yet....unbelievable. I'm calling disconnections tomorrow and hopefully they can guide me through to the right department.  Yous have all been amazing. I will let yous know.

[ZuuLZuuL]

So reached out to Twitter (X) and got through to an amazing tech called John ...he found my email but as its under my Father's name he need to speak with my Dad I order to get security answers to allow him to help. It was probably the best part of 30 years ago when we first got Telewest and got this account. Just hope he can remember the security questions......sigh. Nervous about what they will ask. I remain doubtful but here's hoping. Again. Thanks for all your input. Will keep yous posted.

[coenoby]

@Sololobo

No apologies needed, I should have explained my thinking in my first reply to ZuulZuul.

Just to clarify a bit more; based on my VM email accounts  (I only use them for testing purposes) it seems that the VM webmail password continues to work in email apps until something happens that requires a password reset to resolve the problem.

To do that you have to go through the process of providing a non VM email account and generating a mail app password.

Of course in many cases, the problems people have with their email accounts requires a password reset in which case the mail app password is mandatary.

So I am not saying that the use of the mail app password is optional.

I have to stress all the above is based on my experience with my own VM accounts, I have not seen or heard that stated explicitly by VM. 

Coenoby