Save Your Scan-to-Email
Microsoft 365 Basic Authentication Is Going Away
*This article provides the latest information as of August 2026.
Please visit this link for any potential updates regarding the Deprecation Timeline.
If your business regularly uses a copier or multifunction printer to scan documents to email through a Microsoft 365-hosted email account, you could be affected by an upcoming Microsoft Exchange security update.
The Technical Details
Microsoft is phasing out Basic Authentication for SMTP AUTH in Exchange Online. It is moving users toward OAuth, a more secure authentication method that works better with security features such as multi-factor authentication.
If your copier or multifunction printer uses a Microsoft-hosted email account for scan-to-email, the feature may stop working until the machine’s scan settings are updated.
What Modus Is Doing
Since mid-2025, Modus Support has been contacting clients we believe may be affected by the update. If you have not received a message or completed the update, please reach out.
We will provide instructions to log in to the remote user interface (UI) of each machine and redirect its scan-to-email authentication method to use OAuth.
If your copier does not display an OAuth option, we will schedule a Modus technician to update the machine’s firmware and enable the necessary scan-to-email update.
What You Need to Know
This change will not affect printing or copying. Only scan-to-email features will be affected.
Under Microsoft’s current timeline, Basic Authentication for SMTP AUTH will remain unaffected through December 2026. At the end of December 2026, it will be disabled by default for existing Microsoft 365 tenants, although administrators will temporarily be able to re-enable it if necessary. Microsoft plans to announce the final removal date in the second half of 2027.
Although Microsoft has extended the timeline, we recommend updating affected copiers as soon as possible to avoid future scan-to-email disruptions and improve account security.
At this time, we do not expect this Microsoft change to affect clients using Gmail-hosted accounts for scan-to-email.
Unsure whether this applies to your business? Forward this article to your IT team and ask them to confirm whether your copier’s scan-to-email feature uses Microsoft 365 Basic Authentication.
Modus Support has contacted clients who may be affected, but you can also reach out to us using our email, Support request page, or by phone. Our team can help determine whether your copier requires an OAuth or firmware update and keep your scan-to-email service running smoothly.