Phone suddenly saying "no service"? Here's what to do, in order.
A SIM swap doesn't take your phone. It takes your number, quietly, while your phone sits in your hand looking normal except for one thing: no signal, no calls, no texts. The next few minutes decide how far it goes.
Confirm it's a swap, not just bad signal
Try airplane mode on and off, restart the phone, check if anyone nearby has service. If everyone else has bars and you have none, and it doesn't come back, treat it as a swap, not a network blip. Password-reset or "your SIM was updated" emails you didn't request are the other giveaway.
Call your carrier from another phone, right now
Tell them you believe your number was fraudulently ported to another SIM. Ask them to lock the account, reverse the swap, and require in-person ID or your account PIN for any further changes. This call is the one that actually gets your number back, everything else limits damage while it's in progress.
Lock your email before anything else
From a computer, change your email password and sign out every other session. Whoever holds your number can request password resets that text a code to it, so email is the account that unravels everything else if you leave it. Do it before you even finish the carrier call if you can.
Check your bank and cards immediately
SIM swaps are usually financially motivated. Log in from a computer, look for anything unfamiliar, and call your bank's fraud line if you see it. Ask them to flag the account. A few minutes here is worth it even if nothing looks wrong yet.
Get 2FA off SMS, everywhere, today
SMS codes are the entire point of a SIM swap. Once your number's back, go through your important accounts, email, bank, socials, and switch two-factor to an authenticator app or hardware key. This is the step that makes the next attempt pointless even if someone tries again.
Report it
File at identitytheft.gov, ask your carrier for their fraud department's written confirmation, and file a police report if any money moved. You'll want the paper trail if you end up disputing charges later.
A swap takes the SIM. It doesn't have to take your contacts.
MobileyMe does not stop a SIM swap and does not receive your login codes, so it is not a defense against one. What it does is keep your contacts and messages in your private cloud account, not on the SIM, so a swap doesn't take them with it. While you get your number back from your carrier, you can sign in on another phone and your contacts are there, and calls you place from the app show your number.
Set it up before you need it. That's the only way this kind of backup works.
Set it up now →Questions people ask
How does a SIM swap scam actually work?
An attacker convinces your carrier, sometimes with stolen personal details, sometimes through an insider, to move your number onto a SIM they control. Once that happens, your calls and texts, including 2FA codes, go to them instead of you.
How would I know it happened to me?
The most common sign is your phone suddenly showing "no service" with no obvious reason, no calls, no texts, no data, even though the phone itself is fine. Password-reset or 2FA emails you didn't request are the other tell.
Does a carrier PIN actually stop this?
It raises the bar a lot and you should still set one. It isn't perfect. Social engineering and insider fraud have gotten around carrier PINs before, which is why moving your 2FA off SMS matters just as much as the PIN itself.
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