Verizon is down, with many users seeing 'SOS' – here's everything we know about this outage

Lance headed onto the streets of NYC to give 'Messages via Satellite' a go, as his iPhone 17 Pro Max in Cosmic Orange that's connected to Verizon is still showing SOS. He connected via satellite, following the prompts, but the four messages he sent me still haven't been received on my end.

Down Detector reports are dropping, but many are still reporting issues

Let's take a quick status check on Down Detector – while reported issues with Verizon were at nearly 180,000, it is starting to drop to around 120,000. A significant drop, which might point to some recovery, but also still way above the number we expect Verizon or any cellular carrier to be at on a normal day.

A look at 'Messages via Satellite' on iPhone

While I'm still seeing service on Visible – Verizon's own MVNO – with 5G UW, my colleague, Lance Ulanoff, on Verizon proper, is still seeing SOS and is attempting to use 'Messages via Satellite' on his iPhone 17 Pro Max. Here's what that looks like: it's a pretty nice visual interface that takes over the Dynamic Island.

Other carriers are spiking on Down Detector, but it's likely not another outage

As we see with almost all service outages, competing services tend to spike when one carrier is experiencing one. With mobile carriers, it's generally the case that one person has Verizon and is in the midst of the outage, and they're reaching out to someone at AT&T, T-Mobile, or another carrier; if they don't, they fail to do so.

Generally, it's that Verizon can't connect to that network, not that AT&T or T-Mobile is simultaneously experiencing another outage, though it's possible.

Verizon's responding back to frustrated users on social media

While we still haven't seen a formal Tweet from the @Verizon account, the @VerizonSupport account is responding to individual customers who are tweeting about network connectivity issues. And it appears to be the same message to most folks, likely automated and asking for a DM to help troubleshoot the issue.

It's a good time to try Messages via Satellite on your iPhone

If you see "SOS" on your iPhone 14 or newer, now is a good time to try "Messages via Satellite." Apple originally designed this for when you're out in the wilderness or a place that's intended to have no cellular reception, but it's a good way to stay in contact with family and friends during a network outage.

You can see our guide to using Messages via Satellite here.

Verizon just confirmed the issue with TechRadar and is working on a fix

We've heard back from a Verizon spokesperson, and the carrier has confirmed that an issue is impacting its network.

"We are aware of an issue impacting wireless voice and data services for some customers. Our engineers are engaged and are working to identify and solve the issue quickly. We understand how important reliable connectivity is and apologize for the inconvenience."

Verizon states that it's aware of the issue hitting both voice and data for some customers, but doesn't show how far-reaching the impact is. It's clear it's quite wide; scroll down and read the comments below.

There is no timeline for a resolution, but Verizon's engineers are working on it. So that's a positive.

I use Visible, one of Verizon MVNO's, and still have service

I swapped from Verizon to Visible this past November during the carrier's Black Friday - Cyber Monday sale and am still seeing service on my iPhone 17 Pro Max, actually 5GUW with two bars of service.

Now, Visible is Verizon's MVNO, which means it's a 'mobile virtual network operator' that actually offers its service via Verizon's network, so it's peculiar that it's not impacted by the outage ... at least as of yet.

I am keeping an eye on Verizon's own social channels – mainly @Verizon, @VerizonSupport, and @VerizonNews on X – to see if any comment or acknowledgment is being issued, but there's nothing as of yet.

Meanwhile, here's a sampling of impacted users taking to social platforms to report issues with Verizon.

Verizon's own Network Status isn't showing any issues

Interestingly, Verizon's Network Status checker doesn't appear to show any issues, and I've tried plugging in a few different locations to get it to update. Please let us know in the comments if you're on Verizon and experiencing this outage.

Based on social media posts and Down Detector comments, it's clear that the New York Metro Region, Texas, Florida, Las Vegas, Nevada, and South Carolina are experiencing issues.

I am also encountering a 'please try again' pop-up when using the tool, so it might be experiencing an outage.

For those counting, Down Detector is now at over 90,000 reported issues, with many in the comments noting that on their phones, 'SOS' is appearing instead of network bars. This likely indicates that the device can't reach the cellular network and instead defaults to satellite connectivity, a feature offered by the iPhone and other smartphones.

Here's a look at what that looks like, courtesy of TechRadar's Editor-at-Large, Lance Ulanoff's iPhone 17 Pro Max, which is connected to Verizon's network here in New York City.

The spike is real on Down Detector – as of 12:16PM ET there are over 46,000 reported outages and a few of my colleagues who use Veirzon are seeing 'SOS' in place of network bars on there iPhones.