Verizon No Longer Plans to Sell Unlocked iPhones

Verizon plans to stop selling unlocked smartphones as a way to deter criminals from stealing the devices, the company told CNET.

As of today, Verizon devices will be locked to the Verizon network and unlocked as soon as a customer signs up for service and activates the phone. Later in the spring, though, smartphones will remain locked until unlocked by Verizon, and Verizon has not yet shared details on how long it will keep phones locked before offering to unlock them.

verizonlockediphones
Verizon previously sold all of its smartphones, iPhones included, unlocked, which means they were not tied to the Verizon network and could be used with any carrier right after purchase.

Purchasing a Verizon iPhone has long been a way to get an unlocked device right away, as Apple often does not sell its own unlocked models until several weeks to several months after a new iPhone launches.

With the iPhone X, for example, all Verizon models sold in November were unlocked and were able to be used across different cellular networks.

Going forward, the smartphones that Verizon sells will be locked to the Verizon network. Smartphones locked this way will not be compatible with other carriers until unlocked by Verizon, which is similar to how other cellular carriers in the United States operate.

According to Verizon, the new policy is aimed at preventing criminals from stealing unlocked phones that can be resold or used overseas. "We're taking steps to combat this theft and reduce fraud, Tami Erwin, executive vice president of wireless operations for Verizon told CNET in a statement. "These steps will make our phones exponentially less desirable to criminals.

Verizon has not yet shared details on how its unlocking policy will work, but if it's like other carriers, such as AT&T, the company will offer to unlock a smartphone after a waiting period. AT&T requires customers to wait for 60 days, Sprint requires customers to wait for 50 days (and then automatically unlocks devices), and T-Mobile has a 40-day waiting period, but does offer temporary unlocking for customers who need to travel.

AT&T and Sprint require smartphones to be paid off before being unlocked, but CNET says Verizon will allow customers to unlock their devices regardless of whether or not they're paid off once the waiting period has expired.

Tag: Verizon

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
ipad air windows 11 arm

M2 iPad Air Runs Windows 11 ARM via Emulation, Thanks to EU Rules

Tuesday April 22, 2025 5:01 am PDT by
A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect. As spotted by Windows Latest, NTDev shared an instance of the emulation on social media and posted a video on YouTube (embedded below) demonstrating it in action. The achievement relies on new EU regulatory...
iOS 18

iOS 18.5 Includes Only a Few Changes So Far

Monday April 21, 2025 11:00 am PDT by
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 18.5 to developers today, and so far the software update includes only a few minor changes. The changes are in the Mail and Settings apps. In the Mail app, you can now easily turn off contact photos directly within the app, by tapping on the circle with three dots in the top-right corner. In the Settings app, AppleCare+ coverage information is more...
maxresdefault

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 12 New Features

Sunday April 13, 2025 7:52 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and ...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Triad

Apple's 20th Anniversary iPhone May Finally Go All Screen

Tuesday April 15, 2025 6:31 am PDT by
Apple is preparing a "bold" new iPhone Pro model for the iPhone's 20th anniversary in 2027, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. As part of what's being described as a "major shake-up," Apple is said to be developing a design that makes more extensive use of glass – and this could point directly to the display itself. Here's the case for Apple releasing a truly all-screen iPhone with no...
iphone 17 air dummy unbox therapy

iPhone 17 Air's Extreme Thinness Demoed in New Video

Tuesday April 22, 2025 10:22 am PDT by
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
CarPlay Hero

Apple Releases Wireless CarPlay Fix

Wednesday April 16, 2025 11:28 am PDT by
If you have been experiencing issues with wireless CarPlay in your vehicle lately, it was likely due to a software bug that has now been fixed. Apple released iOS 18.4.1 today, and the update's release notes say it "addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles." If wireless CarPlay was acting up for you, updating your iPhone to iOS 18.4.1 should...

Top Rated Comments

Glideslope Avatar
94 months ago
"These steps will make our phones exponentially less desirable to criminals." Like yourselves ? :rolleyes:
Score: 69 Votes (Like | Disagree)
icanhazapple Avatar
94 months ago
Moved my whole family off of Verizon to T-Mobile (two 55+ year old parents with the two unlimited lines for $60 total with autopay) and my sister and I are on MetroPCS unlimited single lines ($60 a month for me for 50GB data + 15GB of hot spot data & $50 unlimited smartphone data for her line).

Was with Verizon since they were Airtouch Cellular. Most greedy company I've ever done business with. I'm so happy I've left them.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheIguana Avatar
94 months ago
Wow, Canada took one huge step forward this past year (finally) mandating all phones being sold be unlocked while the USA continues the tradition of lock it down...
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kabeyun Avatar
94 months ago
The FCC rules the following:

e)Handset locking prohibited. No licensee may disable features on handsets it provides to customers, to the extent such features are compliant with the licensee’s standards pursuant to paragraph (b)of this section, nor configure handsets it provides to prohibit use of such handsets on other providers’ networks.

Verizon as always with it's greediness.
Don’t worry. Corporate-friendly (and former Verizon Employee) FCC Chair Ajit Pai probably will get his hands on that bit soon enough. But it will all be with the consumer’s interests in mind. Riiiiiiiiiight...
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
H.E. Pennypacker Avatar
94 months ago
Moved my whole family off of Verizon to T-Mobile (two 55+ year old parents with the two unlimited lines for $60 total with autopay) and my sister and I are on MetroPCS unlimited single lines ($60 a month for me for 50GB data + 15GB of hot spot data & $50 unlimited smartphone data for her line).

Was with Verizon since they were Airtouch Cellular. Most greedy company I've ever done business with. I'm so happy I've left them.
That’s fine and dandy unless you need cellular service nation wide.
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Beenblacklisted Avatar
94 months ago
Wow, Canada took one huge step forward this past year (finally) mandating all phones being sold be unlocked while the USA continues the tradition of lock it down...
In the USA, Telecom companies have a very tight hold in Congress, Lobbyist are relentless when it comes to policies being favorable for them.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)