Contributor
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2 Messages
AT&T NEEDS to blacklist unpaid phones..
Why don't they?
They are enabling a huge fraud industry.
I've seen or researched each part of the fraudulent supply chain.
First..fraud caller center calls unsuspecting people and says issue with their AT&T service and it is frozen. They need the last 4 of social to go into account and fix. Person is then transferred and call dropped.
Using that plus other info, fraud ring orders phones on that account they accessed, and has it shipped to them.
Phones then sold to "resellers" who are on eBay, OfferUp, Craigslist, etc.
One seller told me he buys these things in bulk.
The listing might be "honest" and say "financed", or not. They will say it is permanently AT&T locked. Well, sure a new phone is .but if its paid off, you can request an unlock code by law.
They will ALL say the phone is new, but they opened to take photos and remove "their" SIM card..some say the box is sealed.(.what do they need it for if new, sealed phone...think) and box IS still sealed at time of sale, but they will open and remove the SIM before shipping to you.
Why? That sim is tied to whatever account the phone is still on an installment plan with..probably unkown to the account owner.
Shut these theiving/fraudulent rings down by blacklisting unpaid phones.
Gary L
ACE - Expert
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16.1K Messages
5 years ago
By law? Which law?
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Coppertalk
Contributor
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2 Messages
5 years ago
"U.S. President Barack Obama signs S. 517, Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act in the Oval Office at the White House August 1, 2014 in Washington, DC. S. 517 promotes consumer choice and wireless competition by permitting consumers to unlock mobile wireless devices among other things."
Are you nitpicking whether AT&T is " compelled", vs them being consumer-friendly and providing an unlock vs. unlocking not allowed at all?
Is that the point of the thread??
No..so your reply is not constructive or relevant to the topic.
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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107.3K Messages
5 years ago
@Coppertalk
What you are describing is theft, and the phones would be blacklisted as soon as the account holder reports it, or if a new account, the entire account is flagged for fraud and phones will be blacklisted.
No legit seller uses Craigslist or offer up. You buy there you’re asking to get ripped off.
Most of the phones sold as new off eBay are legit sales, often of older phones.
Phones described as permanently locked to a carrier are usually a single owner who skated out on his bill, not a bulk fraud.
Also know eBay is strict. They ban you by your isp, address, payment method, email, etc. highly unlikely a scam gets pulled off more than once.
Once in a while I see a phone marked as ‘bad IMEI’ which means it’s blacklisted. But advertised correctly.
RE phone unlocking
You are reading the “law” wrong. Unlocking isn't required by law, it’s voluntary per the agreement all carriers have signed. CTIA agreement number 12 is the voluntary unlock policy. The previous law prohibiting unlocking except with carrier permission was what Obama repealed. Prior to that unlocking a phone was seen as copywrite infringement, which is is not. Obama basically repealed the law criminalizing unlock services.
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Gary L
ACE - Expert
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16.1K Messages
5 years ago
I'm sorry, but you posted in a public forum that it "you can request an unlock code by law."
And now you're accusing me of being nitpicky because you messed up? You didn't have to play the "it's the law" card incorrectly.
It's your thread. BUT if it's NOT relevant to the point of the thread, you could have left it out but YOU put it in there.
I'm making it clear to other future readers that it is NOT the law...
PLEASE come back and check how many people have read this thread in a few years and you'll understand why it's helpful to have the correct information in it.
That said, with the followup details that you posted:
Is more or less correcting something from a few years previous when "a decision made by the Library of Congress two years ago that said it was illegal for consumers to unlock their cell phones for use on other networks without their service provider's permission". https://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-signs-bill-unlocking-cellphones/ and see more at https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/1123
I'm not sure that it anything to do with compelling the carriers to unlock at all (the carriers had already previously volunteered to unlock).
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