Forgot AOL security question / answer?

Most, if not all, of the information one provides at the time of registering for a free AOL account is important. This includes the name, gender, date of birth, zip code as well as the security question and it’s secret answer.

In fact, the security question is as important as the account password. The two are mutually dependent in one way. You need to provide the secret answer to reset the password and vice versa. Remember to keep both these vital pieces of information top secret and do not share them with others.

Reset the security question if you forget the secret answer

But we are all fallible! So if you’ve forgotten the answer to the security question, simply follow the steps below to reset this information.

1. Sign in at your AOL account [Slide 1]. Yes, you need to know the password to change the security question; more on this at the end.
2. Click “Options” and from the drop down menu, select “My account” [Slide 2].
3. A new browser window / tab will open with the AOL help pages [Slide 3].
4. Scroll down and click the “Security Question” link [Slide 4].
5. The security question will be shown and you will be prompted for the secret answer. Click the “Forgot Answer?” link [Slide 5].
6. To prevent hackers (and their automated programs), you have to prove that you are a human by deciphering the characters shown in the image. If the displayed text seems confusing, hit the “Refresh image” button to get a new set [Slide 6].
7. Decode the puzzle and click “Next” [Slide 7].
8. To reset the security question, you can choose either of the methods – type the alternate email address provided at sign up or enter your personal details (birth date, gender and zip code) [Slide 8]. Submit the required information to move to the next page.
9. Now select a secret question from the drop down and provide the answer in the two blank text fields [Slides 9 and 10].
10. Assuming everything went off well, AOL will inform you that they have reset the security question [Slide 11].
11. Click “Continue” to be taken back to the AOL help pages [Slide 12].

Remember, when you make an AOL email account, all the personal information that is provided is used to verify your identity. Thus, AOL assumes that you had specified the correct day of your birth and the zip code… and yes, the gender!

What to do when you’ve forgotten both the AOL password and secret answer?

Let me give it to you straight! There is little hope is retrieving an account if you’ve forgotten both the password and the secret answer. As I mentioned above, you need to know the latter to reset the former!

You can try contacting the AOL support team via email or phone, but do not expect a speedy or a personalised response. It was your duty to take care of the password and the secret answer. However, if the account was hacked/compromised, probably because of a weak password and secret answer or because this information was available to someone (again your fault), you can write to compromised@abuse.aol.com.