What's changing
For existing Microsoft 365 organizations, Microsoft is disabling SMTP AUTH with basic authentication (a username and password) by default at the end of December 2026. An admin can turn it back on for a while, and Microsoft says it will announce the date it goes away for good in the second half of 2027. Organizations created after December 2026 won't have it at all.
Are you affected?
Look at your copier's or scanner's email settings (or ask your copier dealer). You're affected if it sends through smtp.office365.com, usually on port 587, with a Microsoft 365 email address and password. The same goes for older line-of-business apps that email invoices, reports or alerts that way. When it stops working, the error usually says basic authentication is disabled (for example 5.7.139).
Not sure? Answer three quick questions from your copier's settings and see.
Where to find the settings on your brand: Ricoh, Canon, Sharp, Konica Minolta, Kyocera, HP, Xerox, Brother.
Your options
- Update the copier. Many newer copiers support Microsoft 365's modern sign-in (OAuth) after a firmware update. Ask your dealer first: if yours does, this is the cleanest fix.
- Scan to a folder or to OneDrive instead of email, if your copier supports it and your staff don't mind the change.
- A Microsoft 365 connector. If your office has a static public IP address, an admin can set up a connector so the copier sends through your domain's mail server without a password. It's free, but it needs some IT know-how and a static IP.
- Turn basic authentication back on for now. An admin can re-enable it after the change. That buys time, but only until Microsoft removes it for good.
- A local relay. A small program on an always-on office PC accepts the copier's email the old way and passes it on to Microsoft 365 with modern sign-in. IT people can set up a free open-source relay. Scan Relay is a simple Windows one I make, for offices that just want scan to email to keep working; it has a free 14-day trial.
Do it before January
Whatever you choose, test it before the end of December, while the old way still works as a fallback. The first sign of trouble is usually a scan that never arrives, with no error on the copier's screen.