mikethegreat's Posts

I bought a used Verizon Wireless iPhone 4S from a reputable eBay seller in 2012, which I used as my primary phone on Verizon Wireless for several months.  I switched to an iPhone 5 a few month's ago (in 2013), and my old iPhone was just sitting in my room, unactivated.  I decided to sell it a month or two later.  The guy I sold it to said he couldn't activate it because it was active on another account. I called Verizon and was told that it was indeed active on another account.  Not my account.  Not the account of the guy that I sold the phone to.  The phone was sold in May, but the rep said it was activated on the current account back in April. The rep even went so far as to tell me that the account it was actived on has had fraudulent activity in the past.  I was transferred to the fraud department, who "investigated" the situation for about an hour, and then called back and said that they found no evidence of fraud.  They suggested I contact the tech support department. In the meantime, the guy gave me back the phone and it was indeed active on a 229 area code phone line.  I live in California, the place that sold me the phone is in Texas, and the 229 area code (I found out thanks to Google) is in Georgia.  I called tech support as directed by the fraud department and they said they can't do anything and to call fraud again. I was under the impression that a 3G Verizon phone could only be  activated by having the phone physically in hand and dialing *228.  Apparently what has happened is that someone guessed or found out my old phone's IMEI/ESN, then activated it on their account through the Verizon Wireless website or something, as the phone was not out of my possession at the time it was activated. At this point I'm at my wits end.  I can't use the phone as a backup and I can't sell it.  If anyone from Verizon Wireless reads these things, please help!