What to Do if Your iPhone has bad ESN or blacklisted IMEI?

ESN and IMEI number is basic information that represents a particular iPhone, just like an identification card for people. Most of the users of the iPhone are not aware of the meaning of bad ESN and blacklisted IMEI numbers.

What to Do When iPhone Has Bad ESN:

ESN means Electronic Serial Number which is a unique number for each device that works as a way of identification of a CDMA device. If your iPhone is any of the carriers such as Verizon, Sprint, U.S. Cellular, the carriers that work on the CDMA network in the U.S, then you have an ESN number attached to your device. A bad ESN iPhone stops a device from connecting to the network because of certain reasons which may include not fulfilling the terms and conditions of a network carrier, canceling the account before making any pending payments, violating any rules of a carrier network, and many more.

IMEI means International Mobile Equipment Identity which is a 14 to 16 digits long number that works as a way of identification of a device and it is unique for every iPhone. The IMEI is basically a social security number for phones. An iPhone cannot be used with a different SIM card unless you make a visit to the Apple Store or where ever the iPhone was bought from.

The blacklisted IMEI is similar to a bad ESN as the device cannot get access to signals because either the owner of the device did not activate the phone on any carrier or violated the contract or terms of service of a carrier, or may be other reasons.

Causes of a Bad ESN

1. The authentic user might try to activate the iPhone with a non-compatible carrier.
2. The previous owner of that second-hand iPhone has switched to another carrier.

• If the owner got a large amount of bill of the iPhone. And it’s has deleted the account of the carrier without paying the bill then it results in a bad ESN.

1. There is a contract made between the service provider and the user when one subscribes to any carrier. If the user terminates the contract before the date of the contract without paying the liquidated damages then this will also result in a bad ESN.
2. If the previous owner of the iPhone has reported that iPhone to be lost or stolen and you bought that same iPhone. Then it will also lead to a bad ESN.

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If your iPhone has bad ESN or blacklisted IMEI, you can do the following:

1. Ask for a refund

If you have purchased your iPhone from your friend, a retailer or an e-commerce store, and if your iPhone is blacklisted then you can contact your seller and ask for the refund or replacement of the iPhone. It is recommendable not to purchase the iPhone from an unauthorized seller because you do not get protection.

2. Use it as an iPod or games console

 As there would not be activation of the network, you can use your iPhone for various other functions such as playing video games, watching online videos, listening to music, browsing the internet and many more. You can also download movies and TV series on this device. You cannot make calls with that iPhone but you can make online calls with the use of applications such as Skype, WhatsApp, and Messenger and you can make proper use of your blacklisted iPhone as well. If your iPhone is blacklisted in another country then you can normally use this iPhone after restoring with iTunes without any warranty.

3. Get the ESN or IMEI Cleaned
   

If you have a blacklisted iPhone which is locked to Verizon, Sprint, U.S. Cellular then it is possible to remove them from the blacklist. Most of the people can use their iPhones again with the IMEI blacklist removal that few companies provided.

4. Swap the logic board

If the iPhone is blacklisted from a particular country. Then you can use this iPhone in another country by switching to another network. But it must be unlocked by the original carrier. You can use the iPhone and remove it from the blacklist if you change the logic board of your iPhone. But there may be the risk of any damage during swapping the logic board of your iPhone. The IMEI of your iPhone is not blacklisted in other countries. As the IMEI blacklist is usually localized to a country’s particular service provider.

5. Unlock the iPhone and then Sell it

After unlocking your iPhone you can sell it to foreigners at a low price. The foreigners buy a blacklisted phone. Because they would not stay in the U.S long and the IMEI is only blacklisted locally. So the foreigners and the tourists might be persuaded to purchase your iPhone if you sell with a big discount.

6. Sell the iPhone as spare parts

If the above-mentioned ways would not work, you can sell the spare parts of your iPhone. You can sell the spare parts such as screen, logic board, back casing, and dock connector separately. You can dissect the logic board, screen, dock connector, and back casing and sell them separately. These may be used to help out other broken iPhones.

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