Verizon customers across the United States reported significant issues with their mobile phone service on Monday morning, with many unable to connect to the wireless network. Phones were limited to SOS mode, causing frustration and confusion for thousands of users.
Reports of the Outage
As of 10:11 a.m. ET, over 100,000 reports of Verizon outages were logged on DownDetector, a website that tracks service disruptions across various platforms. The outage spanned from New York to Los Angeles, with users reporting that their phones had no connection beyond SOS mode.
Key Facts:
- Time of Outage: Issues began shortly after 9 a.m. ET.
- Locations Affected: Reports from across the U.S., including major cities like New York and Los Angeles.
- Main Issue: Customers experienced a total loss of service, with phones only able to connect in SOS mode.
Customer Reactions
Many Verizon customers turned to social media to express their frustration and demand compensation for the inconvenience, on social media X:
- “It’s been over two hours and we don’t even know why this is happening. We all pay a pretty penny for our Verizon bill, this time should be compensated until the issue is fully resolved.”
Examples of Customer Complaints:
- SOS Mode Only: Users reported that their phones could not make regular calls, but could still make emergency calls through SOS mode.
- Ohio User Experience: One customer shared on DownDetector, “SOS in Ohio since mid-morning. Was working on my drive into work, but went down several hours ago and hasn’t come back.”
Verizon’s Response
Verizon acknowledged the issue and assured customers they were working to fix it. A spokesperson told CBS MoneyWatch:
- solving the issue.
What Is SOS Mode?
SOS mode allows mobile phones to make emergency calls, like 911, even when they can’t connect to their regular network. Phones in SOS mode can link to other carriers’ networks to provide emergency service, according to Apple.
Additional Challenges
The outage also affected customers using 2-factor authentication, a security feature where companies send login codes via text. This left many users unable to access their financial accounts or even their Verizon accounts, as they couldn’t receive the required verification code.
- Customer Complaint: “How can I log into my Verizon account if I can’t verify who I am by getting a text because of an outage?”
Mobile Service
While Verizon is working on resolving the issue, the outage has caused significant disruption across the country. Customers are awaiting updates and hoping for a quick solution to restore full mobile service.