Verizon’s experiencing a network outage – here’s everything we know so far
And what to do if your iPhone says SOS.
If you’re on Verizon in the United States and you’ve been encountering dropped calls or slower service, you’re not alone. Based on dozens of reports on Down Detector, and customers taking to social platforms like Threads and X, Verizon may be experiencing an outage.
Via Down Detector, it appears that the issues began around 9:35AM ET and have been spiking since, with customers posting that they are receiving no signal on the network. We’ve reached out to Verizon for comments on the outage and what’s happening with the network. We will update this story once we hear anything, but in the meantime, follow our live reporting ahead on the outage.
Most customers are noting that outbound and inbound calls are failing, and users are reporting network instability. Additionally, some folks with an iPhone are seeing the cellular service bars in the top right replaced by SOS, which generally appears if there is zero network connection.
Wecome, we’re here to report on this ongoing Verizon outage. According to Down Detector, there has been a spike of outage reports since 10AM ET.
(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
Verizon customers have been taking to social platform Threads to ask if it’s just them experiencing network issues and expressing frustration. Down Detector’s outage map shows New York, Washington, DC, Atlanta, and Kansas as the areas with the most reported issues, with Los Angeles, Phoenix, and San Fransisco following behind.
Some users note that cellular service reception indicators – aka the bars at the top of a smartphone screen – have disappeared in favor of SOS and a satellite symbol.
(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)
Since reports of the outage first began appearing in the 9AM ET hour, there have been over 105,000 reports of an outage on Down Detector for Verizon, and that appears to be increasing as well.
Folks note that they cannot dial out or have no network, which results in the SOS icon appearing to replace network bars on a newer iPhone. With this feature, the iPhone can connect to a satellite to help send messages or make calls. It was originally used for Emergency SOS via Satellite but now also functions for Messages via Satellite.
Like the massive AT&T network outage earlier in 2024, while the reports first started with Verizon, Down Detector is now showing an increase in reports for AT&T and T-Mobile. It’s important to remember that these might not be issues with these carriers specifically but rather that you’re dialing a number connected to Verizon’s network. Even so, we’ve reached out to both AT&T and T-Mobile to ask about any network disruptions this morning.
(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)