Microsoft can recycle your Outlook email account

Microsoft is recycling email accounts if it becomes inactive.
The company’s Service Agreement tells users to sign in “a minimum of every 270 days” or their account may be cancelled and their data deleted.

Microsoft  confirms that this is the policy, however When the account becomes inactive "the email account is automatically queued for deletion from our servers. Then, after a total of 360 days, the email account name is made available again," .

Yahoo recently started recycling unused accounts and was harshly criticized for this policy. The company reassured users that proper measures where implemented to prevent privacy disasters like identity theft through data obtained from old e-mail.Microsoft, though, appears to be enabling this without properly informing its users.

Microsoft should clearly inform its users about the account reuse policy, Rispoli said. "Microsoft should absolutely mention this policy in their service agreement. Users should be made aware of this."

 Microsoft says: "We listen closely to the feedback we receive from customers, and are always evaluating how to ensure Outlook.com is the best email service available."