setting up an account without an existing email address

[John_G1]

Is it possible to be a newcomer to the digital world?  or a partial inhabitant?

I am helping some recently- arrived Afghan refugees set up banking and phone connections in Canada. The bank says 'download our mobile app' -  but for that they need a phone.

Public Mobile (and probably other mobile apps) asks for an existing email address, for 2 factor authentication. The only email addresses the newcomers have is gmail, set up in Kabul. PM will send a code to the gmail, but gmail will not open with just a user name and password, at least from a device it does not recognize. It too wants a verification code, or message, or something, from the original phone - which does not work in Canada.

I doubt that I can give PM my email address for this purpose, because I already use PM and my email will show up as attached to my account.  Will PM accept more than one account linked to the same email account? That would be helpful but not, for many purposes, very secure.

So how does one get started?

[softech]

@John_G1  @kb_mv   one more thing, PM current system does not work too well with email alias.  It is not advised to use the alias trick anymore.  Since Gmail is free, open a different one for setting up different PM account

[softech · Accepted solution]

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@John_G1 wrote:

The problem with creating a new gmail account is that they still can't access the old one - so they lose all their contacts, data, pics etc there. It resolves the issue going forward (so long as they don't have to prove their identity for the new account using a phone or email, as PM requires...)

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@John_G1 

for the old GMail account: 

https://accounts.google.com/signin/recovery provides the only way to recover a Gmail/Google account.

For PM, there is no identity to prove to activate new account.   So, forget the old Gmail for now for just the activation purpose.  Just create a new Gmail for them

For the activation, you do need app to complete the activation and the app could only be download from App store linked to Canada.  Not if the app store on the current phone is not linked to Canada, you have to help to sideload it, or you have to use your phone to help them to download and complete the activation.  But once activated, they don't need the app anymore, they can just login My Account using a browser. So, it is perfectly ok for you to help them with the PM app on your phone and you can delete it after

[kb_mv]

@John_G1  Any wifi will work. I don't think you need to put the sim in the old phone though if it works it would probably be easiest to do that. Then migrate the old phone to the new and everything should transfer over.

[John_G1]

Thanks. We will try that. Still working on getting wi-fi for them, though it's supposed to be activated this morning. Hoping that the old phones will work with wi-fi (or do you mean, after we put PM SIMs into them too?)

[kb_mv]

@John_G1 Try hooking up their old phones to wifi. Try to sign in to their email account on their new phone. A message should pop up on their old phone from google asking them if they will allow it or not.

Email address changes can be done through customer service.

[John_G1]

The problem with creating a new gmail account is that they still can't access the old one - so they lose all their contacts, data, pics etc there. It resolves the issue going forward (so long as they don't have to prove their identity for the new account using a phone or email, as PM requires...)

I may try the + technique - I have not heard ot it before. 

I presume that one can change email addresses associated with the account, once it is set up (and using some kind of 2FA to prevent SIM-swapping fraud.) I don't want to be getting email about these people's accounts once they are established here, I hope soon.

[kb_mv]

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@John_G1 wrote:

I should specify that we are trying to set up two newly acquired Canadian android phones and have put PM SIM cards in them. The other person has a relatively new iPhone and has put the new PM SIM in it.

Would putting PM SIMs in the old afghan phones (I believe they are here now) allow them to receive the 2FA requests or codes that could then be used in the new phones to confirm identity? Or would they in turn require 2FA from somewhere else to make them work?

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@John_G1 That might work if their old phones are compatible. 

[kb_mv]

@John_G1 Unfortunately you do need a seperate email address for each account to proceed. The good news is, Gmail addresses are a dime a dozen. Have them get a new one here and then sign up. Alternatively if you have a gmail address you can use an alias (this ties them to you though) by adding a + sign before the @ sign followed by anything you like. All emails will be sent to you nut it satisfies the different address requirement.

[John_G1]

I should specify that we are trying to set up two newly acquired Canadian android phones and have put PM SIM cards in them. The other person has a relatively new iPhone and has put the new PM SIM in it.

Would putting PM SIMs in the old afghan phones (I believe they are here now) allow them to receive the 2FA requests or codes that could then be used in the new phones to confirm identity? Or would they in turn require 2FA from somewhere else to make them work?