Manage Account

    To securely access your NICeMail account, the following settings and options can be used from the My Account section.

    Geo-fencing

    Geo-fencing enables you to restrict or allow access to your account based on your geographical location. It increases security by preventing access from outside the designated areas.

    How does Geo-fencing work?

    When you set up geo-fencing, we gather the list of your allowed or restricted countries, which includes the ranges of IP addresses associated with the specific geographical location.

    When a sign-in request is received, we check the IP address against the list and either allow or restrict access based on your configured setup.

    By geo-fencing, you can also restrict sign-ins from the web, mobile browsers, connected apps, and third-party apps integrated with IMAP, POP, CalDAV and CardDAV protocols.

    Note

    Since geo-fencing works based on the IP address, if you've connected with a VPN to a country, not on the list of allowed locations, you won't be able to access your account.

    How do you set up Geo-fencing for your account?

    1. Login to https://mail.gov.in/ and Click your profile picture in the top-right corner to open the profile pane, then click My account. (or go to accounts.mgovcloud.in.)
    2. On the profiles page, Go to Security from the left pane and select Geo-fencing.
    3. Click Set up Geo-fencing.
    4. Select your preferred countries.
    5. Choose whether you need to allow or restrict access from the selected countries.
    6. Click Next.
    7. Select the sign-in request types for which you want to apply this restriction.
    8. Click Enable.
    9. Now Geo-fencing has been enabled for your account with the required restrictions.

    If required, you can also edit the settings after you have set up Geo-fencing.

    Application-specific passwords

    Application-specific passwords are 12-character passcodes that give an app permission to access your NICeMail account from various email clients (such as Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, etc.) and calendar clients.

    If your account is secured with multi-factor authentication (MFA):

    • You cannot use your NICeMail account password directly to access POP/IMAP, email clients.
    • You must use an application-specific password to access those applications. This is because even if the email client is compromised, you can still protect your NICeMail account by revoking the application-specific password you generated for the email client.

    We recommend using application-specific passwords for your email clients even if MFA is not enabled for your account.

    To generate an application-specific password for your NICeMail account:

    1. Login to https://mail.gov.in/ and Click your profile picture in the top-right corner to open the profile pane, then click My account. (or go to accounts.mgovcloud.in.)
    2. Navigate to Application-Specific Passwords under Security.
    3. Click Generate New Password.
    4. Enter a name for the application you want to create a password for, then click Generate.
    5. Make a note of the generated password, as for security purposes, it will not be displayed again.

    To use this password and sign in to your client app, simply enter this password in your client instead of your account password. Your username remains the same.

    IP restriction

    Internet Protocol address, abbreviated as IP address, is a unique series of numbers used to identify a device or a network. These addresses can be used to know where information is being sent and received over the Internet. IP restriction is a feature that allows certain IP addresses to be whitelisted for accessing your NICeMail account. Any access attempts made from networks having IP addresses that are not added to the whitelist will be denied.

    For users, IP restrictions will be configured by the administrator.

    Note

    In case you're not able to sign in from an allowed IP address, contact your administrator

    Change/Reset password

    If you want to change your account password, you can change it by signing in to accounts.mgovcloud.in. However, if you've forgotten your password or if your password has been reset by the admin and you can't sign in, you will need to reset your password. 

    Change password

    1. To change your password, Click on your profile picture in the top-right corner to open the profile pane, then click My Account. (or go to accounts.mgovcloud.in.)
    2. Select Security from the left menu.
    3. In the Password section, go to Change Password.
    4. Enter your current password and the new password in the respective fields.
    5. Re-enter your current passphrase in the Confirm New Password field.
    6. Click Change Password.
    7. You will be asked if you want to terminate all your active sessions. If yes, then select it and click Terminate. You can also choose to revoke access to your connected apps if you've granted permission to them previously.

    Reset forgotten password

    Prerequisites

    • Access to a mobile number linked to your NICeMail account for identity verification.
    • Ability to complete TFA verification for your account using SMS OTP or Gov OneAuth.

    Steps to reset password

    1. To reset your password, go to the sign-in page, then click Forgot Password.
    2. Enter your email address, then click Next.
    3. Enter the CAPTCHA, then click Next.
    4. Click Continue to reset the password.
    5. You need to verify your identity by entering an OTP sent to your mobile number. Click Send OTP.
    6. If asked, enter the mobile number to send OTP.
    7. Enter the OTP received, then click Verify.
    8. As TFA will be enabled for your account, you have to verify the login using SMS TFA or Gov OneAuth.
    9. Enter your new password and re-enter to confirm, then click Change Password.
    10. If needed, terminate the sessions, then click Continue.
    11. Sign in to your account using the new password.

    What are backup codes?

    Backup verification codes are a set of 12-digit codes that allow you to access your account if you cannot use your primary authentication method. If you're unable to access the Gov OneAuth app to view the TOTP, you can use one of these backup codes to recover your account. 

    It’s essential to generate and securely store these codes, as each can be used only once to verify your identity during login. Keeping backup codes on hand enhances your account security and ensures uninterrupted access to your critical applications and information.

    Steps to generate backup codes

    Note

    During your first login, you will be prompted to set up and download backup codes for your account. These codes can be used to access your account if needed.

    If you forgot to generate backup codes during your initial login, you can easily set them up later by following these step-by-step instructions:

    1. Login to https://mail.gov.in/.
    2. Click your profile picture in the top-right corner to open the profile pane, then click My account.
    3. Enter your Email address and password. My accounts page will appear.
    4. Click Multi-factor Authentication in the left menu.
    5. Click MFA Recovery Options, then click Generate new codes.
    6. Once generated, you can copy those codes and store them securely in an encrypted format.

    Note

    • Once generated, the backup codes will not be displayed again. You will have to save them when you generate them.
    • A set of five backup codes will be generated, and each code can only be used once. 
    • If you have used up all your codes or lost them, you can always generate a new set of codes. 
    • Generating a new set of codes will automatically invalidate any unused codes from the previous set.

    How to log in using backup codes?

    It is strongly recommended to generate backup codes for enhanced account security and easier access. 

    Note

    If you are unable to log in to your account and have not previously generated backup codes, have used up all your codes, or have lost them, please contact your Department Administrator for further assistance.

    Follow these steps to log in using Backup Codes:

    1. Log in to https://mail.gov.in/.
    2. Enter your Email address and password.
    3. Click on Sign in other way / Problem signing in?. 
    4. Click on the Try Other Options and select Use backup verification code.
    5. Kindly enter the 12 digit backup codes that you've downloaded. 
    6. Click on verify.
    7. You have successfully logged into your account.

    Once you're logged in, it's advisable to generate new backup codes if you have used up all your codes for future use. Follow the steps provided here to generate new backup codes.

    Getting an error “Device’s date or time is incorrect” or “Authentication timeout. Please refresh the page and try again” while signing in?

    This error could happen if the date or time set on your device is not in sync with your current time zone. If you adjust the date and time to match your time zone, this issue will get resolved.

    What to do?

    To correct the date and time on your device, please follow the instructions corresponding to your device OS. After following the instructions, refresh the sign-in page and try signing in again.

    Windows device

    1. Go to Settings.
    2. Click Time & Language, then click Date & Time.
    3. Toggle the switch for Set time automatically to ON.
    4. Toggle the switch for Set time zone automatically to ON.
    5. Under the “Synchronize your clock” option, click Sync now.

    MacOs device

    1. Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner, then click System Settings.
    2. Click General in the left menu, then click Date & Time.
    3. Click the Lock icon, to unlock the system settings.
    4. Enable the option Set the date and time automatically.
    5. Enable the option Set time zone automatically using current location.

    Android device

    1. Go to the Settings app.
    2. Navigate to the Date and Time settings. (This may vary based on the device. It will be usually under System or General.)
    3. Enable the option Automatic date and time.
    4. Enable the option Automatic time zone.

    iOS device

    1. Go to the Settings app.
    2. Tap General, then tap Date and Time.
    3. Toggle the switch for Set Automatically to ON.

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