Microsoft: Outlook error downloads 'TokenFactoryIframe' file on every visit

Microsoft Outlook is downloading a mysterious file called " TokenFactoryIframe " on macOS when users access the email service through the Safari browser. This issue has now been widely reported by users who have discovered that Outlook downloads "TokenFactoryIframe" files on every visit.

Outlook downloads this mysterious file every few seconds or at least every time you access Outlook on Apple platforms. Based on our investigation, this appears to be an issue caused by an incorrect server-side update posted to Outlook and is not related to Safari or macOS.

Microsoft acknowledged the issue in a statement, but the company has not revealed what caused the download. This could be due to a bug in the HTML of the Microsoft 365 platform, as iframes are a well-known element on websites used to host interactive content or videos.

The issue appears to have first been highlighted on May 2, according to Reddit, and has been widely reported over the past two days.

A Microsoft spokesperson said the issue is limited to Safari and users can switch to any other browser to prevent this from happening. However, we've received reports that the issue also affects Chrome and Firefox on Apple platforms.

What is TokenFactoryIFrame?

After a recent server-side update to Outlook.com, users noticed that a file called "TokenFactoryIFrame" began to appear in the Downloads section of Safari. The email client reportedly downloaded the file every few seconds, and the zero-byte file made the website unusable.

is called an inline frame (iframe), which is an element used on websites. It basically tries to load another HTML page within the document. This method is commonly used for online advertising, embedded videos, interactive content, online games, and many other features.

Thankfully, the file is zero size and harmless, so you can manually delete it from your system without worrying about the consequences. However, there's a catch - deleting it from your device's storage has no effect because the file gets downloaded again when you visit Outlook.com in your default browser, Safari.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed that the company is aware of an issue that forces Outlook to download a token factory iframe every time it is accessed in Safari on a MacBook.

"There is an ongoing issue affecting Outlook on the web via Safari where users are continually prompted to download a file named "TokenFactoryIframe". Currently, the recommended practice is to use an alternate browser server," a Microsoft official said.

How to prevent Outlook from downloading TokenFactoryIframe

To fix the TokenFactoryIframe issue in Outlook, follow these steps:

1. Start Safari , but do not log into Outlook.
2. Go to the Preferences tab from the Safari menu at the top.
3. Select Website.
4. SelectDownload in the General column on the left.
5. This will display a list of websites with download permissions. As long as download permissions for Outlook and Office are disabled, the browser will stop downloading any files provided by Outlook.
6. In the list of sites with download permissions, find and deny all Outlook and Office entries.
7. When finished, exit Preferences.

While this fixes the token factory iframe error in Outlook, it also prevents the browser from downloading all attachments.

Thankfully, you can switch to Chrome to avoid Outlook issues, but this workaround may not work for everyone.

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