Let’s discuss the Fix Outlook Error the Browser or App may not be Secure when you try to add Gmail Account to Outlook profile. Outlook Teams recognized a Gmail Account sync and added an issue with Classic Outlook. This issue occurred when the user tried to add or sync to a Gmail Account to an Outlook Profile.
Do you know what is Microsoft Classic Outlook? Classic Outlook is the old version of the Outlook email application. The classic Outlook app includes many Microsoft 365 subscriptions, including desktop apps and Office versions, such as Office Home & Business.
Due to this issue, Outlook users get an error message and cannot complete the Gmail account syncing. Windows 365 users cannot add a Gmail Account to their Outlook Profile. There are some reasons behind these error messages on Outlook.
The above-mentioned issues may be due to users not having IMAP enabled for their Gmail accounts. Google is in the process of removing that control, but it is still there in account settings for some users. Outlook Teams is releasing a fix, which is currently available to Office Insider in both Current Channel Preview and Office Insider.
Table of Contents
What is Enable IMAP Gmail?
IMAP means (Internet Messages Access Protocol (IMAP), which allows users to download messages from a mail provider’s servers, such as those for Gmail, etc. With IMAP, you can access your email wherever you are from any device.
Fix Outlook Error the Browser or App may not be Secure when try to add Gmail Account
As I mentioned above, Outlook users get errors when trying to sync their Gmail Accounts by adding or signing in. Users who do not have an enabled Gmail account may be affected by the mentioned issue. The following table shows the 2 error messages in Classic Outlook.
| Adding/Syncing Gmail Account | Error Message |
|---|---|
| Syncing Gmail Account in Classic Outlook Profile | “The browser or app may not be secure.” |
| Adding a Gmail Account in Classic Outlook Profile | We weren’t able to set up your Google account with IMAP. You may need to make changes to your Gmail settings.” |
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Issue in Syncing Gmail Account in Classic Outlook Profile
Users face issues with synchronizing accounts in Classic Outlook. The error message is “The browser or app may not be secure.” With this error message, sign-in cannot be completed in Classic Outlook. The below screenshot will show the details.
This browser or app may not be secure. Learn more: Try using a different browser. If you’re already using a
supported browser, you can try again to sign in.
The issue in Adding a Gmail Account to the Classic Outlook Profile
Error messages also occur when users try adding a Gmail Account to their Classic Outlook Profile. The error message is:
“We weren’t able to set up your Google account with IMAP. You may need to make changes to your Gmail settings.”
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Workaround
To fix this issue, Outlook Teams released a fix that changes the sign-in to open another browser window. This change is currently available to Office Insider in both Current Channel Preview and Office Insider. Microsoft will update this topic as soon as they know it will be available to production on the Current Channel.
Other Fixes to Resolve Classic Outlook Issue
Outlook Teams fixes are available only on Office Insider in both Current Channel Preview and Office Insider. So users can switch to Office Insider to get the fix. For this, you can choose to Set a registry key that enables a toggle backstage or Run a registry key that switches directly. There are different methods available in each switching method.
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Author
Anoop C Nair has been Microsoft MVP from 2015 onwards for 10 consecutive years! He is a Workplace Solution Architect with more than 22+ years of experience in Workplace technologies. He is also a Blogger, Speaker, and Local User Group Community leader. His main focus is on Device Management technologies like SCCM and Intune. He writes about technologies like Intune, SCCM, Windows, Cloud PC, Windows, Entra, Microsoft Security, Career, etc.