topic Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen in Get Support

How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:24:49 GMT

Public Mobile CHATBOT tells you to LOGIN to your account to deactivate or make any changes to your phone while its lost/stolen..

THE PROBLEM...... You need your phone to receive the text code to login to your account......

Seriously, when it comes to stupid being ultimate stupid, this wins 1st place......

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

mojorising — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:26:20 GMT

To contact a CS Agent directly, use the link below.

https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/notes/composepage/note-to-user-id/22437

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

HALIMACS — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:27:47 GMT

Yes, sometimes it does get 1st place for being stupid, @braeluke1

Just tap "Didn't get the code?" and you should receive the option to get the code via e-mail as well as other usual options.

Give it a shot.

Then, you can place your account in "lost/stolen' mode and proceed however it is you're going to.

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:34:51 GMT

Thanks for reply but that does not work either.

Once you click RESEND CODE this is what comes up.

Send another security code

Choose how you’d like to receive a new code.

Send text

Send voice message

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:37:34 GMT

That hopefully helps thank you........... i have my cell but my stepdad just lost his and trying to contact anyone at PM is a nightmare....

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

mojorising — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:41:48 GMT

@Chalupa_Batman Do me a favor....Don't call me out on how I try to help people.

Please and thank you.

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:45:48 GMT

I only get the SEND TEXT and the SEND VOICE MESSAGE option..... I do NOT get the SEND TO EMAIL option...

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:49:42 GMT

I do not get the send email option as I only get the resend text and or voice message... was worth the try thank you..

Send another security code

Choose how you’d like to receive a new code.

Send text

Send voice message

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

Chalupa_Batman — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:50:42 GMT

I feel that must be a glitch in the system.

I wonder if an Oracle could explain why some people don't get that "email" option. This isn't the first time we've heard from customers that the option wasn't available.

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:52:48 GMT

You win this showdown thank you......... lol.... I guess one way to keep PM cheap is to have NOBODY help you out other then other members... lol...

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

HALIMACS — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:58:54 GMT

No @braeluke1 , NOT resend code

Tap , "Didn't get the code?"

Refer to my original reply, please.

This is what I get when I tap it:

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 01:05:01 GMT

I get the same display as you but NOT with the Send email option... Someone else mentioned that this is not the 1st time they heard of someone not getting that most important 3rd option of send to email...

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 01:13:15 GMT

I do NOT get this option..... "Didn't get the code?"

I ONLY get "RESEND CODE."

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

Korth_ — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 01:30:23 GMT

@braeluke1 wrote:
Public Mobile CHATBOT tells you to LOGIN to your account to deactivate or make any changes to your phone while its lost/stolen..
THE PROBLEM...... You need your phone to receive the text code to login to your account......
Seriously, when it comes to stupid being ultimate stupid, this wins 1st place.....

I got to experience this the day after Public Mobile revealed their grand EverSafe Self-Serve "upgrade".

Lost or stolen phone = no way to receive SMS 2FA code = no way to login Self-Serve to report phone is lost/stolen

They changed it a few weeks later ... now you have to do the same thing as before. But then you get a new option: "Didn't get the SMS text?" which offers to re-send SMS or to send email instead.

I did learn something useful from this experience. Now I make sure my SIM card is soft-locked - there's no way to use it in another device without entering the code. And I make sure that there's no mention of certain things on my phone's lock screen - my phone number, my name as it appears in my account, my email address for that account, etc. I am also certain to never, ever login to Self-Serve or the Community on my phone, I leave no crumbs and no traces on the phone to hack into the account. I even installed an app to customize the banner - my phone doesn't say "Public Mobile" or "Telus" anymore, it says "Please return for reward". (The lock screen allows a line of text which I filled with a different phone number and a different email address to contact me.)

My great worry was that the new "owner" of my lost phone could just stick my SIM card into another unlocked device and start depleting my account. I was much relieved when I was finally able to login to Self-Serve and immediately activate a new SIM card number (which also immediately deactivates the old SIM card number). This was easy because I happen to always have at least one spare PM SIM card around ... but it wouldn't be an option for anyone who lacks such a spare PM SIM card ...

On the whole, Public Mobile's (Telus's) "upgrade" was a frustrating experience. Doubly so since nobody bothered to respond or reach out or follow up when I posted the complaints, always the same advice to beg for a support ticket from stupidbot.

The only thing which kept me around is my account with all the Rewards and Add-ons and Promos accumulated on it ... but the day that Public Mobile (Telus) decides to replace those goodies with their worthless Points or some other bad bribe is the very same day that I port my "loyalty" out to another provider.

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

softech — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 02:15:47 GMT

@Chalupa_Batman

first, there is really no need to call out others even you don't agree their answers. i see that what we doing now, support others with their service issue, is like how doctors help patients. Different doctors could have different views or different approaches, no need to challenge others

As to why Send email option is not there, it indicates that the account was not fully setup and validated with EverSafe

So, in this case, the OP does not see the Send Email option and @mojorising did provide OP the proper way to resolve the issue directly

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

dust2dust — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 02:42:52 GMT

Wait...how fair is it that we all don't get to see the original message that was responded to by the "complainant"? But we see the response to that. This is not fair. Remove all of the interaction or leave it all. That's fair.

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

braeluke1 — Thu, 02 Nov 2023 03:22:51 GMT

My complaint was a fair one.
Apparently not all accounts got properly updated during an update awhile back.

My stepdad lost his phone and I had no way of retrieving his account.

The only option I had was to receive a text message or voice message to get into the account which is obviously completely useless when you don’t have the phone.

There was no option to receive a link via email to get into the account.

No “Did not receive code” option to be able to select by “email”.

As I titled it one of the stupidest things I have ever seen and as frustrating as hell when there is zero direct customer service help.
One of the people on the forum gave me the customer service link and a representative has already got back to me looking after my problems by locking the account and removing automatic billing.

All is good now because I only had the small data and 100 minutes per month plan so I was concerned with someone abusing it…..

was a number of people helping so thanks to everyone… definitely a head scratcher for a few of us when we did not have the same menus to choose from as a few could not figure out why I didn’t just pick retrieval by email —— lolol,, i did not have that as an option….

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

maximum_gato — Sat, 04 Nov 2023 23:04:48 GMT

@braeluke1

For future reference.....

If you chose the voice option the 2FA code is left on the voicemail. Of course you need to call your number immediately and enter "*" followed by the voicemail pin code. You can then retrieve the 2FA code left as a voice message. The 6 digit code is repeated as often the first digit is cut off at the beginning of the message. Then immediately delete the message.**

To recieve the 2FA code via email you need to first reset the password using the email option to recieve the code.* You then login using the new password which will initially send the 2FA code via text message. You can then either try the resend option ( which I just learned recently will work but I haven't tried it yet) or enter 4×incorrect 6 digit codes in quick succession which will trigger the email option to appear.

*The password only needs to be reset one time for this option to be used for future logins using this troubleshooting method.

**This option will not work if the account is suspended for nonpayment however I have not tested since the eversafe introduction if voicemail still works when lost/stolen is used during an active 30 day cycle (voicemail used to still work.)

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

dust2dust — Sat, 04 Nov 2023 23:10:01 GMT

@maximum_gato- For some unknown to me reason, that didn't work. It didn't leave its message. I tried logging in, I clicked didn't get code, I clicked voice message or whatever, it called my number, I let it ring, it stopped, I waited, no voicemail indicator, dialed in with the 4001 number, no voicemail with a code.

Re: How STUPID is this when you lose or have phone stolen

maximum_gato — Sat, 04 Nov 2023 23:16:01 GMT

@dust2dust

See my edit above.

Edit:

Oops ...lol...my edit in the other thread.