Was using Quicken 2010. Tried to change password now cannot open

prmathis · April 2020

Please help this old duffer. I am using Quicken 2010 and received an email from hacker with my quicken password asking for money. I tried to change password and it did not accept my old password. I have years and years of information. Only use quicken for check registers.
Please help me

GeoffG · April 2020

Restore a backup file from before you changed your password. As an aside, do you really need to password protect your file? I would never consider using one as anything that could go wrong would permanently lock you out of your file.

prmathis · April 2020

I have never restored before. The quicken problem occurred midday 4/23. Received the random email that had my quicken 2010 password. When i tried to change it would not accept new or old pw.

prmathis · April 2020

It was a ransom email using my quicken 2010 pw

prmathis · April 2020

If i contact Quicken will they help restore my data from locked out Quicken 2010?
Its not a question of purchasing current product, but i only use it as a check register. Don’t mind paying the fee.
Any help out there?

GeoffG · April 2020

Your version of Quicken is not connected to the internet in any way. I doubt some hacker was able to obtain your Quicken file password unless you 1) used the same password to access an online site, or 2) the hacker has access to your PC.

If they have access to your PC, then you have more issues than just Quicken. Ransomware will lock down your entire PC.

If you've not restored in the past, it's a simple process. Hopefully you've made backups on a regular basis. If not, Quicken by default has been making periodic backups for you. These should be located in the same Documents folder as your Quicken data file only in a folder named Backups.

Restore from the file menu. File>Backup and Restore>Restore.

Boatnmaniac · April 2020

@prmathis - I agree with @GeoffG that if the hacker has access to your PC then you have a much bigger issue than trying to recover or reset your PW to your Quicken file. Before proceeding on the Quicken issue, I would first scan the PC with a good anti-malware program that scans for viruses, spyware, ransomeware and key-logging. Better yet, do scans with a few different such programs (at least 3) because each program scans in different ways and for somewhat different things. Windows has Defender but don't rely on that alone. Another good program that can help to find/remove malware that others don't or can't is Malwarebytes. There are others and many of them have free trials so this doesn't need to cost you much, if anything.

Once you have done that and if recovering a backup file doesn't solve your issue, you have perhaps another path you can take. It involves upgrading to Quicken subscription and using Quicken's PW removal service (I think there is a charge for this) but I don't know if a 2010 locked Quicken file can be converted to subscription. You really need Quicken Support's assistance on this. Quicken Support will likely not provide you with any assistance on this if you don't upgrade but they will be able to let you know if this is a viable path to take. You might want to read the following thread which talks about this:

https://community.quicken.com/discussion/comment/20024888#Comment_20024888

prmathis · April 2020

I haven’t used Quicken 2010 live in years and years. I’ve depleted trying to quickrestore with every command back in file. Quicken or my pc had to be breached as the bad guy knew my email and password into Quicken 2010.

When i first received the demand email i know he did not enter and corrupt my accounts or were about to? I did the first natural action and attempted to change PW. When i put in old Quicken 2010 PW along with a new PW twice put as instructed then the error came up stating that old password was incorrect and i had been using it daily for 15-20 years. Not blaming anyone but hope Quicken can help me retrieve data for upgrade.

Thank you,
Prmathis
Lafayette Hill, PA 19444

GeoffG · April 2020

Quicken may or may not be able to retrieve your password, but you clearly do not need nor want to begin a subscription version of Quicken. You have not stated what steps you have performed regarding restoring your data file. Can't offer more support without this.

Boatnmaniac · April 2020

@prmathis - I agree that it does appear your system and/or Quicken may have been compromised and that you are a victim of a ransom attack. The fact that your old PW no longer works and that the hacker provided you with your old PW is a strong indication that the hacker could very well have accessed your Quicken file and changed the PW.

In my mind your priority should be to deal with that possible ransom attack first and foremost and without delay:

Make sure your Firewall is on and up to date.
Scan your PC as noted in my previous post.
If you have any financial institution information (i.e., account numbers, routing numbers, customer IDs, PWs) in your Quicken file and if the hacker did change your file PW it means the hacker also likely has that financial institution information. If you have any of that information in your Quicken file you should log in to those financial institutions without delay and change your login ID and PW.

Recovering access to your Quicken file can wait a little while longer. If you do this first while your PC might not be secure then you risk having the same thing happen, again, with your recovered access Quicken file.

Was using Quicken 2010. Tried to change password now cannot open

Answers