What Happens if I Become Locked Out of Duo?

Overview

If you have made five consecutive unsuccessful login attempts, you'll receive an error message stating "Your Duo account is disabled and cannot access this application. Please contact your IT help desk. Please contact the Technology Help Desk at 412-624-HELP [4357]." It will also include an Event ID.

 

What to Do

The lockout is a security feature designed to protect you and your account against unauthorized login attempts. If you see the lockout window above, you have two options:

  1. Wait 15 minutes for the lockout to expire and then log in again as you normally would with multifactor authentication.
    Note: if there is an underlying reason for the unsuccessful attempts, such as the Duo Push not showing up on your phone, you'll want to get that resolved before attempting to login again.
  2. Call the Technology Help Desk at 412-624-HELP (4357). The Help Desk will ask you to verify your identity over the phone and can unlock your account.
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Common questions about Duo MFA at Pitt: enrolling and managing devices, replacing a lost or new phone, push-notification troubleshooting, lockout recovery, fraud reporting, international travel and OFAC restrictions, and choosing phishing-resistant methods (platform authenticators, security keys) over SMS or phone calls.
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