Just want to verify this:
My daughter lost her cell and I’m told by Sprint rep that she can put a restriction/flag on the phone so it can’t be use or activated. Now here is my issue; after I told her that I have a backup phone that I want to activate on that account she ask me if I had a screen look on my old phone because once she removed it from the account it can be activated on any other account with no restriction. Pretty much a clean ESN after the swap.
To my understanding once a phone is flag only the owner can call sprint and have the flag remove. This doesn’t make sense to me because people can just steal ur phone wait few days until you put a phone on your account and then activate it under their name and have a free phone.
If this is true is another reason to not pay for insurance because people will still take ur phone if they know they just have to wait couple of days and
You were told wrong, or more probable, you were told poorly. Once a phones serial number (ESN) has been flagged as lost/stolen, the only way to make that phone work on a network again is to flash it with another ESN (which usually a thief would not know how to do).
arunningpir8 said:
You were told wrong, or more probable, you were told poorly. Once a phones serial number (ESN) has been flagged as lost/stolen, the only way to make that phone work on a network again is to flash it with another ESN (which usually a thief would not know how to do).
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i lost my phones more then ones and they are all without screen locks and bad esn by sprint
and as for as my experience with sprint customer service
i'm not surprised that someone gave you wrong information
it looks to me that they all get paid minimum wage
arunningpir8 said:
You were told wrong, or more probable, you were told poorly. Once a phones serial number (ESN) has been flagged as lost/stolen, the only way to make that phone work on a network again is to flash it with another ESN (which usually a thief would not know how to do).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't think thieves don't use these forums as well
Related
hi, i have recently purchased a touch pro 2 off ebay and i stuck my SIM card in it to find out i cant get a signal or make calls etc..
i really dont know what i should do.
please help. any advice is helpful.
Was it used or new?
used, he was selling as 'it no longer makes calls or sends texts'
if it was listed as barred theres no way i would have bought it. but with what he wrote it sounded fixable.
earni said:
used, he was selling as 'it no longer makes calls or sends texts
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So you were suprised when you got it that it doesn't make calls? Call you provider they might be able to unlock it if the phone isn't broken to begin with. Next time i suggest understand what you are buying because this is a pretty ridiculous post. I am questioning my own judgment for even answering to this post.
i wasnt surprised it didnt make calls, i thought he may just have a bad radio or something but i checked the imei on checkmend and it shows up as blocked..
You bought a phone that the seller told you didn't work. You assumed the reason it didn't work was one thing, but it turned out to be another. Whether he lied to you as to why it didn't work or not, you still took a chance on buying a phone you knew was not working. Take your loss, learn from it and move on.
If the phones blocked then he has found/stolen it. Or put in an insurance claim saying it’s been lost/stolen.
If you paid by PayPal put in a claim giving reason that you were not told the phone was blocked. You will then get your money back.
earni said:
i wasnt surprised it didnt make calls, i thought he may just have a bad radio or something but i checked the imei on checkmend and it shows up as blocked..
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bwaaaaahahahahahaha...that's what you get...!!!
earni said:
hi, i have recently purchased a touch pro 2 off ebay and i stuck my SIM card in it to find out i cant get a signal or make calls etc..
i really dont know what i should do.
please help. any advice is helpful.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had this situation before and although it turned out that the phone I had purchased wasnt stolen, the process will be the same:
Contact your Phone Network and give them the IMEI number and explain the situation. Don't worry - they are used to dealing with this type of call. They will use a database shared between all the network providers to find out the original and current owner of the handset and tell you whether it has been registered stolen or just blocked by the previous owner (this is what happened to me only I found this out a lot later).
If they tell you it is stolen, take the handset and everything that came with it to your local police station, including print-outs of any correspondence you have had with the seller - via the website market place or direct.
The police will give you a crime number and most probably take the device and the print outs from you to investgate further. You will need the crime number to get your money back later on.
Contact the market place and your bank (credit card company) and explain the situation and give them the crime number.
In most situations, the market place will give you your money back (withdraw it from the sellers account). If they dont, your credit card company will do the chasing for you but you'll need to try yourself first.
The market place may ask you for more documents from the police and the police will be very understanding. The police woman assigned to my crime number was very helpful and was in regular contact with me about how the investigation was proceeding.
The whole process may take 6-8 weeks. It can be drawn out but persevere and you will get your money back - and deservedly so.
Good luck and PM me if you need any further advice.
I thought gsm phones cannot be blocked?
DJ_MiX said:
I thought gsm phones cannot be blocked?
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I am no expert but they can certainly be blacklisted by the owner and that was what I was suggesting.
http://www.unlockme.co.uk/blacklist.html was a site I read up on when I was faced with the same situation.
My phone was blocked. I rang up Orange and told them the situation and they unblocked it - to my surprise. At the same time, I had opened a case in eBay which went in my favour, but I decided to keep the TP2 as it's now working. In my case, I could get a signal (four bars), but it always came up with no connection.
Samsung agreed to add a remote kill switch to their Android phones. This is supposed to make a stolen phone useless to resell. My question is... Is this even possible? Wouldn't anything they do be able to be either hacked or overridden by simply reflashing the phone? Would they have to do something that physically damages the phone to kill it? Any thoughts on this?
richb500 said:
Samsung agreed to add a remote kill switch to their Android phones. This is supposed to make a stolen phone useless to resell. My question is... Is this even possible? Wouldn't anything they do be able to be either hacked or overridden by simply reflashing the phone? Would they have to do something that physically damages the phone to kill it? Any thoughts on this?
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Click to collapse
There are namy ways Samsung could do this, from remotely wiping the IMEI which would prevent it from being used to using something hidden in the one of the unrightable partitions that would completely disable the phone and remotely brick it.
Or maybe just convert all the partitions to RAW format. Which is another way of bricking it.
Sent from my SGH-I747 using xda app-developers app
If they did this, would it be irreversible? How is that better than someone stealing my phone and my never getting it back? Either way I'd be out a phone. Wouldn't that be like requiring car manufacturers rigging a car to burn up if stolen?
I hope this is optional because I personally don't want anyone having a remote kill switch to my phone.
richb500 said:
If they did this, would it be irreversible? How is that better than someone stealing my phone and my never getting it back? Either way I'd be out a phone. Wouldn't that be like requiring car manufacturers rigging a car to burn up if stolen?
I hope this is optional because I personally don't want anyone having a remote kill switch to my phone.
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Click to collapse
It's not. The only way they could track it would be by IMEI but this can be changed. To be honest if you phone is stolen your best bet would be report it stolen and forget about it. There is almost no chance to get it back and if you do everything will be erased anyway.
Wayne Tech Nexus
The deal is to stop the phone from getting stolen in the first place. Right now, if somebody steals a phone, they can sell/use it. There is no motivation to steal it if you know it won't work. If it bricks after getting lost until you enter your Google login or something you at least have a shot at getting it back.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
Not to sound too paranoid, but I think the plan is much more sinister. Remember a couple years ago when the gov shut down cell service (I think it was San Francisco) to quell a protest? I think this is what is really at the heart to why these AGs are so hell bent on this. A lot of government officials would love a remote kill switch in cell phones. If there is a kill switch, it's sure to be abused some day. Thus country is headed for a revolution and they are putting a lot of things in place for when that day comes.... gun control, cameras everywhere, gov buying so much ammo that there is a shortage, etc.
The way Apple appears to be complimenting it, is the phone is bricked after wiping until the account that previously owned it puts in their password. That leaves the power in the owners hand, not some remote teleco/govt kill switch.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
All they can do is make the IMEI useless....I already ran into this...I bought a phone from a local computer dealer and took it to an ATT store to have a micro sim put in it, and it did work for about 5 minutes till the IMEI hit the system and it stops you from making calls with the phone. I called ATT and they were like sorry there is nothing we can do and we wont do it, take the phone back where you got it and get your money back (which I did)
carriers say no
http://www.talkandroid.com/184987-u...l-switch-that-would-prevent-smartphone-theft/
dligon said:
http://www.talkandroid.com/184987-u...l-switch-that-would-prevent-smartphone-theft/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
richb500 said:
Samsung agreed to add a remote kill switch to their Android phones. This is supposed to make a stolen phone useless to resell. My question is... Is this even possible? Wouldn't anything they do be able to be either hacked or overridden by simply reflashing the phone? Would they have to do something that physically damages the phone to kill it? Any thoughts on this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Guess what? http://www.techradar.com/us/news/ph...n-up-for-anti-theft-phone-kill-switch-1242938
I'm not an expert on this field, but these are the questions that come to my head as I think about the logistics to support a kill switch. I'm probably wrong in some of the assumptions that I'm making here. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Telcos don't have an incentive to make this work. It has always been possible for a Telco to disable an IMEI at their end thus making any particular IMEI unusable in their network. They already do this when you call them to report your phone stolen. If a worldwide database of stolen phone IMEIs existed then Telcos could have the ability to disable any IMEI in that database. The issue is... who would be responsible for maintaining such database and for the problems that will certainly come up due to inaccuracies and timing of updates (Telco, Government entity, phone manufacturer or a third party) . Can the maintaining entity monetize the overhead of maintaining and supporting such database? Who would pay for it? Who makes the final ruling to include or exclude an IMEI? The end user?... I doubt it. Where would the master database copy reside? And of course... would Telcos in all countries support it? Remember, the Telcos make money off any phone that is active in their network (stolen or not). All they care about is that the user of any active phone in their network is paying the network usage bill. For Telcos the more IMEIs that exists and that can be connected to their network... the better.
I can think of a bunch of issues that could come up when the end user is able to disable the actual phone. I doubt the user would be able to disable the IMEI remotely unless they own the phone and the telco allow it. The issue in the US is that a lot of the phones are subsidized (owned) by the Telco for the duration of the contract. So, in the case that the phone is subsidized the Telco should also have the right to trip the kill switch. I'm assuming that the phone kill switch will be tied to a password known to the rightful owner and "maybe" the renter. The password will render the phone unusable unless the correct password is entered. I'm assuming that if a phone on contract is stolen then the user would either contact the Telco or trip the switch via the Internet. (Lookout and other apps do something similar remotely, but they only wipe the phone.. they do not disable it) If the Telco also has the ability to disable the phone then if the bill isn't paid not only will they disconnect you, but they will also render your phone useless. Good bye data and apps. I also assume that the ability to trip the kill switch remotely would also depend on the network on which the phone is connected. The IMEI (physical address) is translated to an IP address when using the Internet. If I steal a phone in the US and keep it turned off until I register it in a Telco in another country how will the owner trip the kill switch as only the Telco would know which IP address is associated with the IMEI.....
Gotta go to work... Given that I don't know how the kill switch will actually be implemented I don't know if any of the stuff I just wrote above is relevant or makes sense. Just curious as to how the kill switch would work.
tamanaco said:
I'm not an expert on this field, but these are the questions that come to my head as I think about the logistics to support a kill switch. I'm probably wrong in some of the assumptions that I'm making here. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Telcos don't have an incentive to make this work. It has always been possible for a Telco to disable an IMEI at their end thus making any particular IMEI unusable in their network. They already do this when you call them to report your phone stolen. If a worldwide database of stolen phone IMEIs existed then Telcos could have the ability to disable any IMEI in that database. The issue is... who would be responsible for maintaining such database and for the problems that will certainly come up due to inaccuracies and timing of updates (Telco, Government entity, phone manufacturer or a third party) . Can the maintaining entity monetize the overhead of maintaining and supporting such database? Who would pay for it? Who makes the final ruling to include or exclude an IMEI? The end user?... I doubt it. Where would the master database copy reside? And of course... would Telcos in all countries support it? Remember, the Telcos make money off any phone that is active in their network (stolen or not). All they care about is that the user of any active phone in their network is paying the network usage bill. For Telcos the more IMEIs that exists and that can be connected to their network... the better.
I can think of a bunch of issues that could come up when the end user is able to disable the actual phone. I doubt the user would be able to disable the IMEI remotely unless they own the phone and the telco allow it. The issue in the US is that a lot of the phones are subsidized (owned) by the Telco for the duration of the contract. So, in the case that the phone is subsidized the Telco should also have the right to trip the kill switch. I'm assuming that the phone kill switch will be tied to a password known to the rightful owner and "maybe" the renter. The password will render the phone unusable unless the correct password is entered. I'm assuming that if a phone on contract is stolen then the user would either contact the Telco or trip the switch via the Internet. (Lookout and other apps do something similar remotely, but they only wipe the phone.. they do not disable it) If the Telco also has the ability to disable the phone then if the bill isn't paid not only will they disconnect you, but they will also render your phone useless. Good bye data and apps. I also assume that the ability to trip the kill switch remotely would also depend on the network on which the phone is connected. The IMEI (physical address) is translated to an IP address when using the Internet. If I steal a phone in the US and keep it turned off until I register it in a Telco in another country how will the owner trip the kill switch as only the Telco would know which IP address is associated with the IMEI.....
Gotta go to work... Given that I don't know how the kill switch will actually be implemented I don't know if any of the stuff I just wrote above is relevant or makes sense. Just curious as to how the kill switch would work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All you need is flashing software, suck as cdma workshop or dsp tools. Boom bypass any lock, because you changes the calling info, such as the IMEI.
While I see this as an option on stock roms. It will most likely be easily removed if flashed with a custom rom, but as google is also part of it we may see something added to aosp as well.
Bat cave One
Dark Souls87 said:
All you need is flashing software, suck as cdma workshop or dsp tools. Boom bypass any lock, because you changes the calling info, such as the IMEI.
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Click to collapse
I understand that it could be bypassed in a phone with root and with an unlocked bootloader. This might not be as easy with a phone with a locked bootloader like the S5. Changing the IMEI is only an option if the IMEI you're changing it to is valid in the Telcos network. I'm thinking that a kill switch implemented by the manufacturer might be tied to the CPU id or some other unique serial number burned into the hardware..
makers, carriers embrace anti-theft initiative
dligon said:
http://www.talkandroid.com/184987-u...l-switch-that-would-prevent-smartphone-theft/
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Starting in July 2015, all smartphones manufactured by the companies will come with free anti-theft tools preloaded on the devices or ready to be downloaded, according to wireless association CTIA, which announced the agreement on Tuesday.
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New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and San Francisco District Attorney, George Gascon welcomed the voluntary agreement but said it fell short of what they have advocated to prevent theft.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/15/smartphone-theft-idUSL2N0N71WW20140415
Looks like a bit of software, not anything on the hardware layer.
No 'Killswitch Engage' . Just an OS killer or partition reformat?
[Edited for typo]
http://www.androidauthority.com/google-android-anti-thect-kill-swtich-369066/
I don't think the switch is to prevent it from being resold if it was stolen or to brick the phone but to protect your data. Last thing I want is to have my phone stolen and on top of that, the jerk to buy everything in the play store and me be broke on top of no phone or to access my bank account, etc.
It also seems you can restore it all back if you actually get your phone back.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
tamanaco said:
I'm not an expert on this field, but these are the questions that come to my head as I think about the logistics to support a kill switch. I'm probably wrong in some of the assumptions that I'm making here. Please correct me if I'm wrong.
................................................
Gotta go to work... Given that I don't know how the kill switch will actually be implemented I don't know if any of the stuff I just wrote above is relevant or makes sense. Just curious as to how the kill switch would work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dark Souls87 said:
All you need is flashing software, suck as cdma workshop or dsp tools. Boom bypass any lock, because you changes the calling info, such as the IMEI.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dark souls makes a good point. IMEI is tied to the software. That's why we can back it up and restore it, etc. and cdma workshop in combination with an old throw away phone IMEI or even buying a 20$ feature phone and using that IMEI it to easy to do. But it can a be a good deterrent I believe for most. It'll just have us XDA'ers concerned lol.
drago10029 said:
Dark souls makes a good point. IMEI is tied to the software. That's why we can back it up and restore it, etc. and cdma workshop in combination with an old throw away phone IMEI or even buying a 20$ feature phone and using that IMEI it to easy to do. But it can a be a good deterrent I believe for most. It'll just have us XDA'ers concerned lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While this is partly true the imei is also hardcoded into some of the hardware. This is why when people mess up their IMEI they cant fix it. Not to mention changing the IMEI is completely illegal. Meaning XDA doesnt advise or condone doing this.
zelendel said:
While this is partly true the imei is also hardcoded into some of the hardware. This is why when people mess up their IMEI they cant fix it. Not to mention changing the IMEI is completely illegal. Meaning XDA doesnt advise or condone doing this.
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Click to collapse
Wow illegal?? I had no idea lol. And yea i figured some of its hardcoded. Speaking of it being hardcoded. I gitta back mine up. Why are a lot of i747 people losing theirs? Anyone know?
I have my galaxy s3 through tmobile, and I used to be on my boyfriend's account. Well after we broke up, he reported my phone as stolen. Now I cant use my phone with any carrier, because apparently the IMEI number has been blacklisted. I have called tmobile to explain the situation, but they are not hearing it because I wasn't the account holder. Is there any way to go around this situation? They will not listen to me or believe me, even though I take my phone to them and show all of my data and proof that I have had it forever! Please help, because if I cant fix this then I will be out a lot of money that I do not have!!!
jessf said:
I have my galaxy s3 through tmobile, and I used to be on my boyfriend's account. Well after we broke up, he reported my phone as stolen. Now I cant use my phone with any carrier, because apparently the IMEI number has been blacklisted. I have called tmobile to explain the situation, but they are not hearing it because I wasn't the account holder. Is there any way to go around this situation? They will not listen to me or believe me, even though I take my phone to them and show all of my data and proof that I have had it forever! Please help, because if I cant fix this then I will be out a lot of money that I do not have!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I'll bite the bullet on this one. It looks like you are screwed as your phone is blacklisted and most of the carriers are sharing lists, so you probably never be able to get service in the U.S. Your only real options, other than pursue legal action against BF/TMo, are to sell the phone to a non-U.S. party for them to use or part it out.
Good Luck with it.
Thread Cleaned. Do not spam the boards to get 10 posts.
Im purchasing a g3 from cl and i ask the guy to send me the imei so i can verify that its not stolen and all the good stuff and he told me he would not send it because he did that before and someone clone it and his phone stoped working. My question is. Is this possible i always thought this was a safe practice when dealing on cl
He may be saying that cause it's got a bad imei and he doesn't want you to know because you won't buy the phone then. I don't know if you can clone an imei without having the device.
I thought the same it most likely stolen he is very persistent
Sounds like it has a bad imei then
Technically you can write an imei to a different device without having the original device, however this guy in particular you can simply call the phone company 3way you, him, and the company. And verify over the phone that way, and if he doesn't want to do that either then the phone is a bad imei device and I'd advise against buying it.
Yea i decided not to he seemed to persistent about making the the deal
I finally got a new phone and I want to sell this one off eBay however I want to make sure this is sell ready. I went back to stock rom am I good to go or do I need to do anything else?
Well, you might be a little confused on what the ESN (Electronic Serial Number) actually is...
In short, if the phone can get voice and data service by signing up through the provider, the ESN is clean. If you are currently using it on a voice/data network with no issues, the ESN is clean. An ESN is only blacklisted by a service provider when reported stolen or you didn't pay your bill for too long. At that point, any attempts to sign up new service for the phone will be rejected, and the attempt to do so is usually reported by the provider.
The ESN is programmed into the firmware of the phone itself when it is manufactured; note that it is not programmed into the OS firmware ROM, but the firmware on the phone itself that contains things like the PRL (preferred roaming list) and other information the data modem needs to make a data connection. This firmware is independent from the OS and usually never changes except when updating the PRL or activating it for first-time use. The ESN is then linked to your phone service account with your provider unless you cancel service, report it stolen, or possibly if you stop paying your bill for too long.
The ESN can be changed with phone programming software (QPST, CDMA Workshop, etc). However, this is very illegal and I never advise attempting to do so. A change in the ESN is also detectable when it differs from the ESN/IMEI sticker usually under the battery. Because of the illegality of this, I will give no further details. If you stole the phone you are trying to sell, the ESN will come up as stolen when the purchaser of the phone attempts to register it with the service provider.
Hope that helps.
If you did steal the phone, karma will catch up with you
AlwaysLucky said:
Well, you might be a little confused on what the ESN (Electronic Serial Number) actually is...
In short, if the phone can get voice and data service by signing up through the provider, the ESN is clean. If you are currently using it on a voice/data network with no issues, the ESN is clean. An ESN is only blacklisted by a service provider when reported stolen or you didn't pay your bill for too long. At that point, any attempts to sign up new service for the phone will be rejected, and the attempt to do so is usually reported by the provider.
The ESN is programmed into the firmware of the phone itself when it is manufactured; note that it is not programmed into the OS firmware ROM, but the firmware on the phone itself that contains things like the PRL (preferred roaming list) and other information the data modem needs to make a data connection. This firmware is independent from the OS and usually never changes except when updating the PRL or activating it for first-time use. The ESN is then linked to your phone service account with your provider unless you cancel service, report it stolen, or possibly if you stop paying your bill for too long.
The ESN can be changed with phone programming software (QPST, CDMA Workshop, etc). However, this is very illegal and I never advise attempting to do so. A change in the ESN is also detectable when it differs from the ESN/IMEI sticker usually under the battery. Because of the illegality of this, I will give no further details. If you stole the phone you are trying to sell, the ESN will come up as stolen when the purchaser of the phone attempts to register it with the service provider.
Hope that helps.
If you did steal the phone, karma will catch up with you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I am a bit confused, I once tried selling my old S3 off eBay that my mothers boyfriend gave me but the buyer couldnt activated so i had to clean the ESN. I didnt steal this phone I bought it off eBay and used it for a month then got the Note 5. I just dont know if rooting and installing a custom ROM can mess everything up and the new owner won't be able to activate the phone.
I went ahead and unrooted the phone and reverted it back to stock ROM. So is it safe to sell this phone or is there more I need to do?
Also thank you.
Check the esn/IMEI on swappa. That will tell you if it is clean and sellable.
Frankenscript said:
Check the esn/IMEI on swappa. That will tell you if it is clean and sellable.
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Click to collapse
Nevermind I read it wrong.
Adamgm10 said:
Yeah I am a bit confused, I once tried selling my old S3 off eBay that my mothers boyfriend gave me but the buyer couldnt activated so i had to clean the ESN. I didnt steal this phone I bought it off eBay and used it for a month then got the Note 5. I just dont know if rooting and installing a custom ROM can mess everything up and the new owner won't be able to activate the phone.
I went ahead and unrooted the phone and reverted it back to stock ROM. So is it safe to sell this phone or is there more I need to do?
Also thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
With that said, it sounds like to me your ESN is clean because it hasn't been reported stolen and is not associated with a delinquent account. It just sounds like you rooted the phone and installed a custom ROM. There is nothing wrong or illegal about that, but it usually does void the manufacturers 1-year warranty. There is no need to un-root and go stock when selling unless that is how you want to sell it or the buyer requests it.
Bottom line: Rooting the phone and installing a custom ROM has NO impact on the ESN, and vice-versa.
You're very welcome, sir.