That was a straightforward answer to the question. To better understand, lets go more in-depth and explain what an ESN is.<\/p>\n
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What is an ESN?<\/h2>\n
\nAn ESN is an Electronic Serial Number. Every device has a unique serial number and this is what the wireless carriers use to connect a phone to an account. ESN can also be refereed to as “MEID” or “IMEI”. These are all the same thing, they are just used by a different networks which use different naming convention.<\/p>\n
In the United States there are 2 major networks being used, GSM and CDMA.<\/p>\n
CDMA networks use an ESN or an MEID\u00a0and GSM networks use an IMEI as device identifiers.<\/p>\n
Below is a list of the biggest carriers in the United States and there corresponding network.<\/p>\n
![\"All](\"https:\/\/54.227.83.233\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/images-300x168.png\")
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CDMA Networks<\/strong><\/p>\n GSM Networks<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Now that we are better informed, lets go through the process of checking if a device has a bad ESN.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n No worries, we have other tools at our disposal. There are numerous websites we can use to run a check online. Here are a few:<\/p>\n Verizon Wireless\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.verizonwireless.com\/bring-your-own-device\/<\/a><\/p>\n Sprint<\/strong><\/p>\n https:\/\/swappa.com\/esn<\/a><\/p>\n T-Mobile<\/strong><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.t-mobile.com\/verifyIMEI.aspx<\/a><\/p>\n AT&T<\/strong><\/p>\n http:\/\/www.checkesnfree.com<\/a> – Run a Blacklist check<\/p>\n\n
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Ways to check your ESN<\/h2>\n
\nThe most\u00a0reliable way to check if a device has a bad ESN is to call the carrier.\u00a0The only problem is\u00a0that carriers are not very forward when giving out personal device information. You may have to call them a few times, before you can get the carrier to run a check on said device.<\/p>\n