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OneDrive storage full? Outlook stops receiving email. Fix it without losing a file.
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Guide, Updated

"Your Microsoft storage is almost full": real email or scam?

Microsoft really does send this warning, and scammers copy it every day, often with a threat that your photos will be deleted. You do not need to be an expert to tell them apart. You need one minute and one rule: never use the link in the email.

Microsoft storage full email scam

The short answer

  • Do not click anything in the email, however real it looks.
  • Check yourself: type onedrive.com in the browser, sign in, and read how much storage you use.
  • Full? The warning was real, and you have weeks to act. Not full? It was a scam: report it and delete it.

Why this scam works so well

The free Microsoft account has 5 GB, and it fills up fast once OneDrive backs up your Desktop and photos. Many people have already seen a real warning, so a fake one looks familiar. And the fake one adds what the real one never does: a deadline of hours, and the fear of losing every photo.

The one-minute check

  1. Leave the email. Do not click the links, the buttons or the attachments.
  2. Open your browser and type onedrive.com yourself.
  3. Sign in with your Microsoft account.
  4. Look at the bottom of the left menu: it shows how much storage you use, for example "4.8 GB used of 5 GB". In Outlook.com the same numbers are under Settings, General, Storage.

If the numbers say you are not full, the email was a scam. If they say you are full or close to it, the warning was real, and now you are looking at it on Microsoft's own website.

Signs of a fake

  • The sender name says Microsoft or Cloud, but the address after it is a random name or domain.
  • A deadline of hours: "today", "within 24 hours", "last notice".
  • A threat: your photos, videos or account will be deleted or blocked.
  • An offer that sounds too good: storage for a tiny price, a loyalty gift, a free upgrade if you confirm your card.
  • A link that, when you rest the mouse on it, does not lead to microsoft.com, live.com or onedrive.com.
  • "Cloud storage" without saying which service, or a service you do not use at all.

An email without these signs is not proof that it is real: good fakes copy the real ones word for word. That is why the check above beats any list.

What the real warning means

Microsoft warns you before anything stops: an email and a notice in OneDrive and Outlook.com. Over the limit, you can no longer upload new files, and Outlook.com stops sending and receiving email. After three months over the limit Microsoft freezes your OneDrive, after six months it may delete the files. Nothing is deleted the day the email arrives. What to do is in OneDrive storage full.

If you already clicked

  • You only opened the page: close it and delete the email.
  • You typed your password: change it now, by typing account.microsoft.com yourself, and turn on two-step verification. If you use the same password elsewhere, change it there too.
  • You typed a card number: call your bank, block the card and check the latest payments.
  • You opened an attachment or installed something: run a full scan with Windows Security.

Report it, then delete it

In Outlook.com choose Report, then Report phishing. In Gmail open the three dots and choose Report phishing. It helps the filters stop the next one. Then delete the email.

The same scam with other names

The same email circulates with the name of iCloud, Google or a generic "Cloud". The check is the same: open the real website yourself, sign in, read the storage. If you do not have that service, there is nothing to check: it is a scam.

A copy at home takes the fear away

The scam works because people are afraid of losing their photos. With a verified copy of every file on a disk of your own, that threat has no grip. Salvako makes that copy, each file checked by SHA-256 fingerprint, and its guardian warns you on your PC when OneDrive gets close to full, long before any email, real or fake. You keep OneDrive as it is.

Questions

Is the "Your Microsoft storage is almost full" email a scam?

It can be either: Microsoft sends real warnings, and scammers copy them. Do not use the link. Type onedrive.com in your browser, sign in, and look at your storage. If it is not full, the email was a scam.

How do I check my real Microsoft storage?

Type onedrive.com in the browser and sign in: the storage you use shows at the bottom of the left menu. In Outlook.com it is under Settings, General, Storage.

Will Microsoft delete my photos today if my storage is full?

No. Over the limit you can no longer upload, and Outlook.com stops sending and receiving email. Microsoft freezes the account after 3 months over the limit and may delete the files after 6 months. Nothing is deleted on the day of an email.

I clicked the link in a storage full email. What now?

If you typed nothing, close the page and delete the email. If you typed your password, change it now by typing account.microsoft.com yourself, and turn on two-step verification. If you gave a card number, call your bank and block the card.

Do I need a link from an email to buy more OneDrive storage?

No. Storage and Microsoft 365 are bought from your Microsoft account or the OneDrive website, which you can open yourself. An email link is never the only way.

Why do I get "cloud storage full" emails for a service I do not use?

Because they are sent at random to millions of addresses, with a generic "cloud" name or the name of Microsoft, Apple or Google. If you have no account with that service, it is certainly a scam.

Know how full your OneDrive is, without emails.

Salvako's free Check shows in two minutes what is in OneDrive, how many files are online-only and how much space a copy needs. It changes nothing.

Run the free Check

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