A British Columbia cell phone service is witnessing an alarming increase in the number of individuals falling victim to fraudsters selling used, blacklisted cell phones shortly before or after a sale and disabling the phone’s ability to pick up cellular service in Canada.
Many sellers of used cell phones are submitting fraudulent insurance claims to telecommunications companies by reporting a cell phone lost/stolen after a sale. In other situations, individuals are being sold stolen cell phones, or mobile devices that get blacklisted by a telecommunications company due to unpaid bills. Prior to a buy, consumers can test if the phone picks cellular service, or go online / contact a telecommunications company to determine if a phone is blacklisted, but that’s little help when a mobile device is blacklisted after a sale.
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