Google Mail Authentication Issues

Sometimes you’ll see a "Password incorrect" error when you sign in to Google with a third-party app, like iPhone’s Mail app or Outlook

If you’ve entered your password correctly but you’re still getting the error, the most common reasons are:

1. You have 2-Step Authentication enabled on your account, and need to use an App Password
2. Your app does not support more modern password authentication methods and you need to change your Google Mail account to allow less secure apps to access your account
3. Your account has been temporarily locked due to failed log in attempts

1. 2-Step Authentication and App Passwords

If you use  2-Step-Verification and are seeing a “password incorrect” error when trying to access your Google Account, an App password may solve the problem. An App password is a 16-digit passcode that gives an app or device permission to access your Google Account. Most of the time, you’ll only have to enter an App password once per app or device, so don’t worry about memorizing it.

How to generate an App Password

1. Visit your App passwords page. You may be asked to sign in to your Google Account.
2. At the bottom, click Select app and choose the app you’re using.
3. Click Select device and choose the device you’re using.
4. Select Generate.
5. Follow the instructions to enter the App password (the 16 character code in the yellow bar) on your device.
6. Select Done.

Once you are finished, you won’t see that App password code again. However, you will see a list of apps and devices you’ve created App passwords for.

2. Allowing less secure apps to access your account

Google may block sign-in attempts from some apps or devices that do not use modern security standards. Since these apps and devices are easier to break into, blocking them helps keep your account safe.

Some examples of apps that do not support the latest security standards include:

• The Mail app on your iPhone or iPad with version 6 or below
• The Mail app on your Windows phone preceding the 8.1 release
• Some Desktop mail clients like Microsoft Outlook and Mozilla Thunderbird

Change account access for less secure apps

To help keep G Suite users' accounts secure, we may block less secure apps from accessing G Suite accounts. As a G Suite user, you will see a "Password incorrect" error when trying to sign in. If this is the case, you have two options:

• Option 1: Upgrade to a more secure app that uses the most up to date security measures. All Google products, like Gmail, use the latest security measures.
• Option 2: Change your settings to allow less secure apps to access your account. We don't recommend this option because it might make it easier for someone to break into your account. If you want to allow access anyway, follow these steps:
  1. Go to the "Less secure apps" section in My Account.
  2. Next to "Access for less secure apps," select Turn on. (Note to G Suite users: This setting is hidden if your administrator has locked less secure app account access.)

3. Locked Account

Still having trouble signing in? If you still can’t sign in to your account on the app, try the following:

1. On your device’s browser, go to https://accounts.google.com/DisplayUnlockCaptcha.
2. Enter your username and password, then enter the letters on the screen.
3. Go back to the app and try signing in again.