Locking yourself out of a bellsouth.net email account feels different from forgetting any other password, because the BellSouth brand technically no longer exists as its own service. If you typed your old password three times and got nowhere, you are not doing anything wrong; the recovery process simply lives somewhere you might not expect. Your address is still active and free, but it now runs on a different platform with a different sign-in path. Once you know where to go, getting back in takes only a few minutes.
Once you regain control, replace the old password with one that cannot be guessed. A free random password generator creates a long random password locally in your browser, and nothing you generate ever leaves your device.
Where Your BellSouth Email Actually Lives Now
BellSouth email is no longer a standalone product. Addresses ending in bellsouth.net are now managed by AT&T Mail, which is powered by Yahoo, and AT&T has retired the separate BellSouth mail brand. Your legacy address is kept for free, but you reach it through the AT&T Mail (also called AT&T Yahoo, or Currently) platform.
This matters for password recovery because there is no separate BellSouth login to reset. Sign-in is handled through Yahoo's login system, while your actual credential is your AT&T ID. The password you use for AT&T services and the password for your email are one and the same.
That single detail explains a lot. When you reset your email password, you are really resetting your AT&T ID password, and vice versa. Keeping that in mind prevents the confusion of changing one credential and wondering why the other still feels broken.
Getting to the Right Sign-In Page
The safest place to start is AT&T's official BellSouth email page, which links you straight to sign-in and password help. Beginning there means you avoid hard-coded or outdated login links and always land on the current, supported flow.
From there, open the AT&T Yahoo / AT&T Mail webmail portal at currently.att.yahoo.com and choose to sign in with your full bellsouth.net address. Because the email is powered by Yahoo, the sign-in screen may look like a Yahoo login, but the credential you enter is still your AT&T ID.
Type your complete address, including the @bellsouth.net portion, rather than just the part before the @ symbol. The full address is what the system recognizes as your user ID.
Resetting Your Password Step by Step
Once you are on the sign-in screen, you can launch the recovery tool directly. The process walks you through identifying your account, proving it is yours, and setting a fresh password. Follow these steps in order.
- 1.On the sign-in screen, select Forgot password, or open AT&T's password reset tool for AT&T Mail. Remember that your AT&T Mail password and your AT&T ID password are the same, so resetting one resets the other.
- 2.Enter your AT&T ID when prompted. For a BellSouth account, your AT&T ID is your bellsouth.net email address. Type it in full, then continue.
- 3.Choose how you want to verify your identity. You can choose to receive a temporary password by text message or email, or you can answer your security questions instead.
- 4.If you pick the temporary-password route, watch the screen closely. The temporary-password page tells you where the code was sent, so you know which inbox or phone to check.
- 5.Retrieve the temporary password from the text or email, then use it to sign in.
- 6.Create and confirm your new permanent password. This new password works for both AT&T Mail (your bellsouth.net email) and your AT&T ID going forward.
If you assigned an AT&T wireless number to your AT&T ID, text-based temporary passwords become available. One caveat worth knowing: a newly assigned number can take up to 30 days before it can be used for resets, so a brand-new number may not work the same day you add it.
When You Have Also Forgotten Your User ID
Sometimes the password is not the only thing that slipped your mind. If you cannot remember your bellsouth.net user ID at all, you need to recover that first before the password reset can succeed.
On the sign-in helper, choose the Forgot ID? option to start the user ID recovery flow. Provide a contact email where AT&T can reach you, and pick how you want to receive your ID.
Once your user ID comes back to you, continue straight into the temporary-password or security-questions step described above and create a new password. Recovering the ID and the password in the same session saves you from starting over.
Reconnecting Outlook, Apple Mail, and Phone Apps
If you only read your mail on the web, finishing the password reset is usually the end of the job. But if you check bellsouth.net in Outlook, Apple Mail, or a phone mail app, a changed password by itself may not reconnect you. Those apps often need a special key instead of your regular password.
The key you need is called a Secure Mail Key. To create one, sign in to your AT&T account, then go to Profile > Sign-in info > Manage secure mail key > Add secure mail key. Generate the key, then enter it in your mail app in place of your password.
Some apps support OAuth instead, which lets them authenticate without a Secure Mail Key at all. If your app offers a sign-in-with-AT&T or browser-based authorization option, you can use that route and skip the manual key entirely.
The Server Settings That Make It Work
When you reconnect a third-party app for a @bellsouth.net address, the server values have to be exact. Use the following settings, and supply your Secure Mail Key as the password rather than your normal account password.
- 1.Incoming mail (IMAP): server imap.mail.att.net, port 993, with SSL required.
- 2.Outgoing mail (SMTP): server smtp.mail.att.net, port 465, with SSL required and authentication turned on.
- 3.For both servers, enter your Secure Mail Key in the password field so the app can authenticate.
Getting one of these values wrong is the most common reason an app keeps asking for a password even after a successful reset. Double-check the port numbers and confirm SSL is enabled on both the incoming and outgoing sides before you save.
Staying Signed In Going Forward
Because your email and AT&T ID now share a single password, any future change you make in one place ripples to the other automatically. That is convenient once you expect it, and confusing if you forget it. Storing your new password somewhere safe, along with any Secure Mail Key you generated, will spare you a repeat of this process.
If you switch phones or add a new mail app later, you do not need to reset your password again. You simply create a fresh Secure Mail Key for that app and plug in the same server settings. Your webmail at currently.att.yahoo.com keeps working with just the password, no key required.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can't I find a BellSouth password reset page anymore?
BellSouth no longer operates as a separate mail service. The brand was retired, and bellsouth.net addresses are now managed by AT&T Mail, which is powered by Yahoo. You recover your password through AT&T's tools rather than a dedicated BellSouth page.
Is my BellSouth email password the same as my AT&T password?
Yes. Your AT&T Mail password and your AT&T ID password are identical, so resetting one resets the other. There is no longer a separate credential just for the email side of the account.
How do I receive a temporary password during recovery?
After you start the password reset, AT&T can send a temporary password by text message or email, or you can answer your security questions instead. The temporary-password page shows you where the code was sent so you know which inbox or phone to check.
I reset my password but Outlook still won't connect. What's wrong?
Third-party apps often need a Secure Mail Key instead of your account password. Create one under Profile > Sign-in info > Manage secure mail key > Add secure mail key, then enter that key in the app. Confirm your server settings use imap.mail.att.net on port 993 and smtp.mail.att.net on port 465, both with SSL.
I added a new phone number to my AT&T ID but can't get a text code. Why?
A newly assigned AT&T wireless number can take up to 30 days before it can be used for password resets. Until then, use email or your security questions as your verification method instead of a text message.