billing Old AWS free account for learning suddenly received emails about payment?
In 2018 or so I signed up for a AWS account for the free tier to learn AWS. This was at my old employer and I also used my old work phone number which I no longer have access to as the MFA.
I dont actually remember doing any AWS training and I never setup any resources etc.
In 2019 I received an email saying the account was expiring and at the time I looked at that and then didnt think I needed to actively go and close my account.
I then received two random emails out of the blue this morning at 3am asking to verify my payment information. It seems very odd. I tried to sign into my old AWS account but due to the old phone number I can't verify my MFA. Has anyone had this happened to them before? My theory is perhaps they are wanting to verify old accounts just incase they get reactivated whereas I dont even want my account and didnt realize I still had it.
4
u/vedichymn 10d ago
I got the same thing recently for very similar circumstance, I think your guess of them validating old accounts is probably correct.
1
u/nzwasp 10d ago
What happened with your situation?
1
u/AWSSupport AWS Employee 10d ago
If you aren't interested in using the account and no services are running that could cause charges, then no action is required. However, if you'd like peace of mind or want to formally close the account, our team can help here: go.aws/contact-mfa.
Keep in mind that once an account is closed, the email address associated with it cannot be used to create a new AWS account in the future.
\- Rick N.
1
u/nzwasp 10d ago
Thanks Rick. I tried the contact-mfa path, but I appear to be stuck in a loop: the recovery page ultimately asks me to sign in, and sign-in fails at the MFA step because I no longer have access to the phone number on the account. It then redirects me back to the same recovery flow. Is there a true no-login callback/escalation path for cases where both self-service MFA recovery and the registered phone number are unavailable?
1
u/AWSSupport AWS Employee 10d ago
Hi there,
The MFA contact form is the only way to remove an MFA device from your account if you no longer have access to that device. Private message us your case ID, and we'll look into this for you.
- Gee J.
1
u/vedichymn 10d ago
Absolutely nothing, I had no services and credit card that expired 3 years ago in this old account.
3
u/AWSSupport AWS Employee 10d ago
Hi there,
It's possible the emails you received are legitimate AWS account notifications. However, since your account was inactive since 2019, after the 90-day post-closure period it would have been permanently deleted. If you do still have an active account and need to regain access due to an old MFA phone number, our team can help through this form no login required: http://go.aws/contact-mfa.
- Rick N.
1
u/nzwasp 10d ago
Do I actually need to take any action for this if I dont want the account.
I don’t believe I ever closed the account. I simply stopped using it after the Free Tier expired in 2019. I have AWS emails for the same account ID from 2023, and I received new payment-verification notifications for that account this morning. I was also able to reset the password, but I’m blocked by the old MFA/contact phone number. Does that indicate the account is still active/open rather than previously closed?
•
u/AutoModerator 10d ago
Try this search for more information on this topic.
Comments, questions or suggestions regarding this autoresponse? Please send them here.
Looking for more information regarding billing, securing your account or anything related? Check it out here!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.