** Please help! No mobile network connection for three days now.

[John-A-Anderson]

Sunday, July 6, 2025 at 10:42 pm EST

Please read the entire message before writing a response.  As much information as possible is included so that anybody who responds will be able to get answers to their questions and not have to ask numerous, unnecessary questions.  The only time I ask a question here is after I have tried everything I know of which might fix the problem(s).

At this point, I am at the end of my rope, I am so frustrated.  It has taken far too long, wasted far too much time (during which I should have been able to do other things) and if a clearly communicated, straight forward solution to the immediate problem is not provided in by Monday (July 7), I will have to consider cutting my losses (with Public Mobile) and just order all payments to be stopped, although this is not how I want this to be "fixed".

The phone I have which was (until Thursday) connected to Public Mobile was a new, LTE capable phone made for the Canadian market when it was first connected (to Public Mobile) in 2022.  It is still in excellent physical condition. 

Except for the occasional and short time frames when the mobile network stopped working (about once per year), it worked fine.

Every time the phone has been turned on since last Thursday, the message on the screen says "Mobile Network not connected."  It is used primarily for text messages, but since then phone calls and text messages can neither be received, sent or connected. 

Payments are taken automatically, so that is not the issue. 

It has been on the basic $15 for 100 outgoing talk time minutes with 250 MB of data plan since the physical SIM card was activated and the phone was first connected (to Public Mobile) in 2022.  This phone is primarily for my child and I to communicate with one another, so a phone which does not connect is not an option (for obvious safety reasons). 

The SIM card has been carefully removed, inspected, gently cleaned (although it did not need it) and carefully re-inserted.  The SIM card is in almost new condition and has rarely been removed from the phone for these 3 1/2 years.  The SIM card is, therefore, not the cause of this problem.

The phone has rarely been connected to the internet, but on the odd occasion when it was, it occurred through the school's or our home's wi-fi and nothing strange or dangerous, for lack of a better term, has been downloaded to the phone; so that is not the cause of this.

The second issue, which may or may not be related, but which also needs to be "fixed"; is that it is not clear whether (or not) I have an online Public Mobile account. 

There was a lot going on in my and my child's lives back in 2023 when PM decided to force everybody to use a new EverSafe account and all I read about (on the PM Community message boards here) was all the problems  this transition was causing and customers being blocked from accessing their accounts.  Communications to customers about how to successfully complete the transition was very unclear and it created much confusion and problems, it seemed; so I decided to wait until all the problems had been fixed before I set up a new EverSafe account.

As already stated, my child's life (she has a learning disability, her mother was putting her through a kind of hell and she was experiencing many difficulties at school, etc.) and mine (her mother had decided to take me back to Family Court and was dragging me through her special kind of hell also, amongst other things, etc.) and I have been caring for our child alone since she was a toddler.  

With everything happening, I just forgot about setting up a new online account since the plan was being paid for automatically anyway.  

Error messages (and other communications) from EverSafe and Public Mobile are never clear, it seems, which just complicates matters.  

The day I found out Public Mobile's network was no longer connecting to the phone, I tried to re-set the Public Mobile online account (if there still is one for my phone) and it stated that a one time passcode had been sent to my account's e-mail address, but it was either not sent or not received.

As a result of that, I have set up this new online account (for the purpose of requesting information about how to fix these problems).

Since PM's mobile network no longer connects to the phone, it cannot be used to send a one time (or any other) pass code to for account verification purposes.  

The phone works fine and the SIM card is in excellent condition and the phone worked perfectly before Thursday.  The information I do have is the PM account number, the number of the card used to make payments for the plan and the phone number of course; but when the email address registered for the online PM account (before the transition to the new EverSafe accounts occurred in 2023, if I remember correctly) is submitted to EverSafe for it to send a one time passcode (to the email address, since the PM mobile network is not connecting to the phone); EverSafe stated it had found the email address and sent the message with the code, but that message was not received.

When I set up this new account (to post this message), it send the account set up code immediately, accepted it and set up the account immediately; so I know that part of the EverSafe system is working.

So read all the information in the preceding sentences first before asking any questions, as I have tried to provide all the information possible to reduce the number of questions which need to be asked. 

1) Why did the PM mobile network stop connecting to the new (in 2022 when it was first connected to the PM network) LTE cell phone and how can that problem be fixed?

2) How can I re-establish the online PM account for this phone, if possible, or set up a new one, if re-establishing the prior one is not possible?

3) How can these problems be fixed when PM's mobile network is not connecting to the phone anymore and EverSafe's system to send a one time pass code to the old online account's email address is not working?

Please respond with clearly written, step by step instructions, written for somebody who is not a senior level computer programmer or electronic engineer; as I am neither of those. 

Thank you so much for any clear, straight answers anybody can provide to fox these two big problems, as soon as possible; so my child can use her phone again.  Any help you can offer is greatly appreciated.  *** 

[John_A_Anderson]

Everything was not working yet, just figured out how to fix the network connectivity issue.

The original account issue is still unfixed.

Soon after the first issue (network connectivity) was fixed, PM and EverSafe created another one. 

Read about this latest one here : 

https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/Get-Support/Why-are-so-many-customers-PM-accounts-blo... 

This nonsense would make for a humourous situation comedy show if the reality wasn't so much of a frustrating time waster for each customer left holding the bag and babysitting it.  

[slusagm]

great to hear everything is now working @John-A-Anderson 

if you have an iPhone, you need to enable Turn on this line and set it as Primary to make it work

For other Android phone, you have to enable the Public Mobile sim (and if yours is a Pixel, you need to set it as Primary as well)

[John-A-Anderson]

Monday, July 7, 2025 at 7:09 pm EST : "Hello everybody.  My name is John and I am an idiot."  When you read how I fixed the inability to connect (to the Public Mobile network) problem, you will understand why.

Thank you for your help, hTideGnow and slusagm.  It is very much appreciated.

Really, I should not have included two problems in one message here; but, since I was unable to determine the cause of the failure to connect (to the Public Mobile network) problem, I had to consider all the possible causes, including that it had something to do with the PM online account (or lack of one).

Both of you provided great ideas about what could have caused the inability to connect problem and how to      re-establish my PM account.

Shortly after disconnecting from the PM Community, I remembered something about what had to be done to make sure my other phone (a new 4G LTE/5G VoLTE one), which is for me, was connecting to the 4G LTE network (after replacing my old 3G phone).  Settings on each phone must be turned on (if it's not automatic) for a new phone to connect to the LTE or VoLTE networks.

Upon checking the settings in my other phone (for my child’s use), it was determined that there’s a setting which requires the phone to be connected to the SIM card, and that setting was turned off, for some unknown reason.

Once that setting was turned on, the phone began using the SIM card and almost immediately connected to the Public Mobile network and the phone was then able to receive the text messages which had been sent while the SIM card setting was turned off.

Why I didn’t think of this from when the problem first began is beyond me.  It has happened perhaps two times before, so I should have remembered that (and tried it first).  So, yes, I am an idiot (for forgetting to check the settings first).

My child leaves technical issues to me and does not change device settings, so I know it wasn’t done intentionally.  Perhaps the SIM card somehow moved a millimetre or two out of it’s slot and that automatically turned the setting off, although that is just a guess.

Regardless of what turned the setting off, that problem is now fixed, which is more important than what caused it.

Since both of you gave the same solution to the account situation, I will assume it is a relatively easy fix and will begin the process today or tomorrow.

Thank you hTideGnow and slusagm for all your help. It is very much appreciated.

[John-A-Anderson]

Monday, July 7, 2025 at 7:02 pm EST                                                                                                                                    1. No, the black list (of stolen phones) was not checked to see if the new phone from a Telus store bought in 2022 had mistakenly been added to the list.  It doesn’t make sense to me that somebody working at Telus (since nobody else would be able to obtain it’s IMEI #) would add a new, still in the box phone to the stolen phone list.  If added to the list, it would not be accidental either.

2. a) As already stated in the third paragraph of the original message, the phone has been connected without any major or unfixable issues since 2022, which is 3 1/2 years, so Public Mobile has not applied and kind of “limitation” on it’s use or functionality.  If PM did apply some kind of unstated “limitation” on a customer’s phone, it doesn’t seem like that would be legal anyway.

2. b) As stated in the fifth paragraph of the original message, “It is used primarily for text messages, but since then phone calls and text messages can neither be received, sent or connected.”

2. c) As stated in the third paragraph of the original message, “The phone I have which was (until Thursday) connected to Public Mobile was a new, LTE capable phone made for the Canadian market when it was first connected (to Public Mobile) in 2022.  It is still in excellent physical condition.”  Every 4G phone transmits communications and data (such as text messages) using the LTE standard and the phone connected to the PM network works on either 3G or 4G (LTE), so when 3G is not available (in the area where the phone is) or is eventually shut off, the phone will automatically connect to the 4G LTE network.

3. d) A company in the federally-regulated communications industry cannot just shut off an entire network like that without first providing many months of warning to it’s affected customers that it plans to terminate that service, in any case.  None of the cellular network companies in Ontario have shut down their 3G network yet, so even if the phone is not 4G LTE compatible, it should still work here, as long as there is not an issue with the phone.            

As I always suspected and as it has turned out, the brand and model of phone or some mysterious “limitation” PM might have imposed on some phones (for some unknown, unexplicable reason) had nothing to do with the phone’s inability to connect to the Public Mobile network.  Read the next message for the explanation.

[hTideGnow]

hi @John-A-Anderson 

1. did you actually check the phone against the blacklisted site provided?  Your phone could have been bought from Telus but it could be put onto the blacklist by mistake

2.  Your phone could be a 4G phone and from Telus, but PM has some limitation and your phone might not work fully here.  So, your question is the phone now able to connect to the network at all or just not working with Voice?  If it is a voice only issue, it could be due to the fact that your phone is not on PM's VoLTE whitelist and 3G no longer sufficient in your area

And, what phone is that?  Let us confirm it for you

[slusagm]

If it is a phone bought from Telus, it should be ok to use here.  But don't know why you hesitate to disclose the model 

You can try to test it with a Telus sim or Koodo sim to see if it connects

Or since you need to message PM about login, you can also ask them if they see why the phone is not connected to PM network 

[John-A-Anderson]

Monday, July 7 at 12:00 am EST                                                                                                                                       a) The phone is not stolen (black listed) as it was bought brand new from a Telus store.

b) The phone is not “defective” because you think I said it was dropped. What I wrote (in response to hTideGnow) is that I inspected the SIM card in case my child may have dropped or jostled the phone, which may have slightly moved the card out of it’s slot.

c) As stated in the original message and my response to hTideGnow, it is not an old 3G only phone.  This one was made in 2022 for the Canadian market and is LTE 4G compatible, as is every phone made after 2017; so any issue regarding the radio frequency band reserved for old 3G only phones does not apply to this phone, as it is capable of receiving and sending radio signals across the 4G LTE radio frequency band, as well as the old 3G band; so the make and model of the phone is not what has caused Public Mobile’s network to stop connecting to the phone.

[slusagm · Accepted solution]

@John-A-Anderson 

the latest change to the network is that PM has re-align the 850Mhz bands on 3G for other use.  

Some people have a phones that are not designed for  Canadian market,  the phones do not have compatible bands on 4G/LTE and have been only using the 850Mhz band on 3G will hence lost connection completely.  So, the model matters.  If your phone is one of those non-Canadian market phones, it could have worked well in 2022 but no longer working now.  

Kindly let us know your phone model so we can help further

[John-A-Anderson]

Sunday, July 6, 2025 at 11:12 pm EST

   Every phone made for the Canadian market after 2017 is LTE capable.  This one was made in 2022, connected to the Public Mobile network at the end of 2022 and has worked perfectly since then, for 3 1/2 years; until the PM network stopped connecting to it three days ago; so the brand and model of phone is not the issue.   

   After this message is posted and I get a break, I will test the SIM card in my other phone, to at least that as the possible cause.  

   If it doesn't work in my other phone, which is brand new and has only been in use for four days; a trip to the nearest PM (Telus) store to get a new, hopefully functional, SIM card will be added to my schedule tomorrow.

[slusagm]

@John-A-Anderson 

As you stated in your Question # 1:

it said 2002 on your original post before you updated your post

I was wondering after that too, but since you had 2 different years, it is hard for me to tell which one was the correct on.  Glad correct it after

And even it connects in 2022, there had been some network changes since.    Also, your phone could be defective now as your said the phone was dropped

But first check if your phone is blacklisted
https://www.devicecheck.ca/check-status-device-canada/

And what model is your phone?

[John-A-Anderson]

Sunday, July 6, 2025 at 11:03 pm EST

   Thanks for your response hTideGnow.  

   As stated in the original message; the SIM card has rarely been removed from the phone; but, just in case something happened to it that my child did not tell me (such as it moved a little bit from it's slot because the phone was dropped or jostled, for examples) I carefully removed, inspected, cleaned and gently re-inserted it.

   The suggestion to try it another phone is a good one though, so I will do that after I post this message; even if it is just to eliminate that as the cause of the connection failure problem and then i will post the result of that experiment as soon as possible.  

   Thanks for the great advice.  It is much appreciated.

[John-A-Anderson]

Sunday, July 6, 2025 at 11:02 pm EST

    Thank you for your response, slusagm.  As stated in the third and seventh paragraphs, the phone was new in 2022 when it was connected to the PM network and is an LTE capable phone, as is every cellular phone (made for the Canadian market) after 2017.  

   Since Public Mobile did not exist way back 23 years ago, it would not be possible to connect to it then.

   The typing error in the first question (about the year the phone was made) has been corrected now, so thanks for pointing that out.

[hTideGnow]

hi @John-A-Anderson 

if you are unable to login as you have never setup an EverSafe account, please ask PM support agent to get that setup.   You can submit  ticket by direct message:  
          https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/notes/composepage/note-to-user-id/22437 

Remember CS_agent will reply to your Community inbox within 2 to 4 hours, please check your inbox here:
           https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/notes/privatenotespage            

For the phone issue, what model is that phone?   And try testing the sim in another phone to see if it works

[slusagm]

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@John-A-Anderson 

1. the phone was first connected in 2002?  it was 23 years ago.  I can safely safe the phone is no longer compatible here

2. to re-establish the login and account with PM, you need to open a ticket.  

Since you cannot properly login, you won't be able to open the preferred Chatbot ticket.  So, you will need to message them here:
       https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/notes/composepage/note-to-user-id/22437

CS_Agent will reply to your community inbox between 9AM-10PM EST (Mon-Sun), check here:
      https://productioncommunity.publicmobile.ca/t5/notes/privatenotespage 

3. after you talked to CS agent, you will be able to access EverSafe