According to a support notice from Microsoft, the Android edition of the Microsoft Authenticator app will cease using a Microsoft account to back up data in January 2027. From then on, users wishing to back up their data must use Google One backup. A Google account typically comes with 15GB of free storage, which is entirely sufficient for backing up the data in Microsoft Authenticator. Microsoft outlined the change in its support documentation on the backup change.
Abandoning Microsoft Backup for Security Reasons
The iOS edition of Microsoft Authenticator already began, in September 2025, switching from Microsoft-account backup to Apple iCloud backup, invoking the iCloud Keychain to store key credentials. Unexpectedly, Microsoft is only now preparing to adjust the backup strategy for the Android edition. In a certain sense, breaking away from the Microsoft-account system is the better course.
Previously, Microsoft’s account-based backup carried a restriction: only a personal account could serve as the recovery account, whereas work and school accounts could not. In enterprise environments, an employee backing up data with a personal account would bind personal and company data together, which, from a compliance standpoint, is not compliant.
After switching to iCloud and Google One backup, enterprise scenarios are better controlled. For a corporate-issued device using a managed account, for instance, the backup data will follow that managed account rather than depositing enterprise-environment data into a personal account.
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