Delete Account

Hotmail accounts can get hijacked in a number of ways and are often used by thieves to spew spam, phishing messages and malware to everybody in the account’s address book. Along with its general Hotmail support portal, Microsoft has an article on recent reports of Hotmail account hijackings and what you can do to try and rescue your account.

If you can get to it, the first thing you should do is change the account’s password — and change it to a strong password made up of letters and numbers so it’s hard to guess. You should also update your machine’s security software and run a system scan to see if any viruses or malware from the hijackers has infected your computer. (If you have a PC and don’t have any security software, consider the free Microsoft Security Essentials program.

Microsoft’s Windows Live Solution Center also has a section devoted to account recovery and security with steps to take if you still have access to the compromised Hotmail account.

If you try all the suggested steps there and still can’t get back into your account, try the Windows Live ID Account Recovery page, which might help you reset your password by way of the secret question and answer you set up when you created the account, or by sending password information to the alternate e-mail account you supplied when signing up for the Hotmail account.

To close your Windows Live Hotmail account:

Go to the Close your account page.

Click Close account.

Close Your Paid Windows Live Hotmail Account

If you pay for your Windows Live Hotmail account (so you can access it in Outlook, for example), make sure you end your subscription service before closing the Windows Live Hotmail account as above.

But Will They Keep My Data and My Emails?

If you close your Windows Live Hotmail account, all mail will be deleted and your account is marked inactive. This means that you can no longer send messages from it, and it won't accept any new mail either. Messages to your Windows Live Hotmail account then bounce back to the sender with an error message.

If your Windows Live Hotmail account is inactive for 120 days (about 4 months) it will be completely erased and your Windows Live Hotmail user name can be taken by somebody else. You can reactivate your Hotmail account at any time within those 120 days by signing in.