# I purchased a blacklisted phone is there anything I can do to make it work?



## lowkickqop

I got scammed. Bought an att samsung galaxy SII. Turns out the phone was broken. I fixed it. Now it turns out it's blacklisted. I called ATT to return it to the owner and even the local att store but all they told me was there was nothing they could do. The police won't care if I report it. It's not on the top of their agenda. Trust me I know because I was scammed before and lost quite a chuck of change near a grand on a bicycle that was originally returned to the owner. Is there anyway to un black list my phone? I'm so bummed right now.


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## Bal3Wolf

if you used paypal or ebay might be able to get them to refund you the money.


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## audioxbliss

There's nothing legal to be done. There are some rather illegal methods, but I won't discuss them. You have options to get reparations, but it'll take some effort on your part, with no guarantee of results.


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## lowkickqop

i purchased it from the local classifieds in my area. What scum.


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## Scorpion667

Sell it as is, or better yet disassemble and sell the parts individually. Any alternative to get that phone working is not worth it. Just be honest with the buyer. Someone somewhere with a cracked/scratched s2 would love to transfer their pcb into a good condition one.

Escalating your issue all over at Samsung wouldn't help either, I tried that once.

Sorry to hear it bro that sucks...
I would recommend you only buy phones from local stores, cell phones are one of the only things I don't buy online for that reason. Or at least local sellers, so you can test a sim before you buy.


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## EpicPie

@ OP, the person you bought it from was probably still on contract with the phone then reported it as stolen after he sold it to you to claim insurance fraud.

If you have a location the seller of the phone lives or a phone number call the police to report him or her.

Always best to check an IMEI on a phone before you buy.


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## Sped

I'm assuming you needed a new phone seeing as you bought a phone on Craigslist. But at least you can use it as an Android media device, or put it up on Craigslist again and make a note that the ESN is bad but it can use be used for parts or just as a media player. Sorry to hear you got scammed.


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## lowkickqop

I did list it locally for sale as blacklisted. I mean lesson learned is lesson learned. I just want a working phone by the end of the night. I got screwed I know I did. The phone is still under warranty through samsung if that makes any difference. I did call samsung and explained what happened they were very polite but ultimately said they only repair phones they do not replace them. Will someone post an easy step by step guide on how to root my phone? Send me a PM if you want to help out a good citizen.


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## EpicPie

Someone who is on T-Mo would be able to use the phone even though it's blacklisted on AT&T.


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## CrazyHeaven

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *EpicPie*
> 
> Someone who is on T-Mo would be able to use the phone even though it's blacklisted on AT&T.


Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 2

This is true. It would still work on t mobile and with some pre paid carriers without you having to do anything illegal. I would report him to the police. You have his phone number and maybe even his email address.

I recently helped my mom get a Verizon gs3 and we met at the Verizon store. They checked it out before I brought it so we knew it was legit. I buy phones local because the price is usually lower.


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## lowkickqop

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *CrazyHeaven*
> 
> Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 2
> This is true. It would still work on t mobile and with some pre paid carriers without you having to do anything illegal. I would report him to the police. You have his phone number and maybe even his email address.
> I recently helped my mom get a Verizon gs3 and we met at the Verizon store. They checked it out before I brought it so we knew it was legit. I buy phones local because the price is usually lower.


How would I unlock it? And could I buy a straight talk t mobile sim?


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## lowkickqop

Okay so here is what I thought of doing but tell me if it makes sense. Get a straight talk t mobile sim for the phone and unlock the phone for t-mobile/straight talk? Im a little confused by my own question. But is that right. How do I unlock my phone. I honestly dont want to do anything illegal.


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## KamuiRSX

Essentially, you just need to unlock the phone and then take the sim card out. Whoever buys the phone from you can put in a SIM card for whatever network they want. Or use it on Straight Talk yourself (AT&T MVNO).

Unlocking: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1289395


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## lowkickqop

Got my phone working. Thanks for all those that helped!


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## EpicPie

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *lowkickqop*
> 
> Got my phone working. Thanks for all those that helped!


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