Need help with notifications

[BobXS]

I've had my first smartphone for about a year, and I still can't get the hang of how (some) notifications are supposed to work. (I have a Galaxy A03s, which I bought from Verizon.)

My general problem is that notifications pop up saying only the most general things – for example, that there are "new updates." But what's supposed to be updated isn't described, and tapping the notification makes it simply disappear. It seems to me, based on my experience with computers, is that the coherent way for a notification to work would be for it to act as a link to a place which is relevant to whatever the notification is about, but apparently they're not designed to work that way.

Notifications re updates aren't that big of a deal, of course, because I can always go to one of several places (e.g., the Google Play Store or the Galaxy Store) to see what's what. But I've received other notifications that were so uninformative as to be useless.

This morning, I got this notification, which said this, and nothing more:

"Activation incomplete
Please contact customer service (800) 922-0204 for assistance."

I haven't installed any apps for the last several months, and am not aware of anything that needs to be "activated," so I have no idea what this message could possibly refer to.

I Googled that phone number, which led me to this discussion on the Verizon forums:

https://community.verizon.com/t5/Other-Network-Discussions/1-800-922-0204/td-p/1119498.

The discussion didn't resolve anything, except to suggest to me that phishing or the like may or may not be involved in some way, so I'm not going to call that number any time soon.

I understand how phishing generally works for phone calls and text messages. But this notification is from "within" my own phone, isn't it? What am I supposed to make of such a thing? If it's legitimate, because something was supposed to be activated, how can I find out what was supposed to be activated – without calling the suspicious phone number? And just how are notifications in general supposed to work, so when I read and uninformative one in the future, I can actually make use of it, or at least understand what the heck it's about?

Thanks.

P.S. I know I can try to ask Verizon about this, but my experience with their support has not been good, not worth waiting the 40 minutes or longer that it usually takes to talk to someone.

 

[Hadron]

It's very hard to say what a notification is from without seeing it. All notifications are generated by an app on your phone. Some of these are system apps, but they are still apps. If you've been downloading apps from dodgy sites some of them might be deceptive as well (occasionally such stuff may get into the Play Store, but downloading from random sites is a more likely source of such stuff).

An app you install is unlikely to ask you to phone to activate anything. The obvious way of checking would be to call your service provider, but I can understand why you are reluctant. If you wanted to call that number I guess you could call from a landline (giving away nothing), give them no information and ask them to identify themselves. But it does sound phishy to me, so personally I'd ignore it. The real question is where it came from? Normally I'd expect stuff like that to come as SMS - after all, if they want you to call a number it's no use if the notification disappears before you can do so!

Depending on what android version you have (and whether Verizon have messed with things) there are options for making notifications more or less detailed. Have a look in your notification settings. There is also a "notification history" you can use to review notifications which have disappeared. Maybe you can get more information these ways. If the thing you are curious about doesn't appear in the notification history then it is something else (apps can flash up temporary notices, but that's not used much these days and was mainly to give status information about the app you were currently using, like that something had finished loading).

 

[BobXS]

It's very hard to say what a notification is from without seeing it. All notifications are generated by an app on your phone. Some of these are system apps, but they are still apps. If you've been downloading apps from dodgy sites some of them might be deceptive as well (occasionally such stuff may get into the Play Store, but downloading from random sites is a more likely source of such stuff).

An app you install is unlikely to ask you to phone to activate anything. The obvious way of checking would be to call your service provider, but I can understand why you are reluctant. If you wanted to call that number I guess you could call from a landline (giving away nothing), give them no information and ask them to identify themselves. But it does sound phishy to me, so personally I'd ignore it. The real question is where it came from? Normally I'd expect stuff like that to come as SMS - after all, if they want you to call a number it's no use if the notification disappears before you can do so!

Depending on what android version you have (and whether Verizon have messed with things) there are options for making notifications more or less detailed. Have a look in your notification settings. There is also a "notification history" you can use to review notifications which have disappeared. Maybe you can get more information these ways. If the thing you are curious about doesn't appear in the notification history then it is something else (apps can flash up temporary notices, but that's not used much these days and was mainly to give status information about the app you were currently using, like that something had finished loading).

Thanks for the advice.

I looked in notification history, but unfortunately it didn't help. The language there is exactly the same as appeared in the notification itself, except that there's also a heading which says "Setup Wizard," which doesn't help.

I'm definitely not going to call the number without knowing what it is. Maybe what I'll do is call Verizon in the middle of the night, on the chance that I can get through without waiting in line for an hour.

(Fun fact about Verizon support -- which I mention just to gripe. Their website has a link that they call "Talk to Us," which they say works this way: "Let us give you a call as soon as an agent is available. You can also request a call at a time that fits your schedule." When you click the button labeled "Call me," however, instead of letting you schedule a time for them to call you back, a pop-up says "sorry," and explains that you have to sign in (even though you're already signed in) "or" call a particular 800 number. That 800 number, however, is the same one that everyone calls to wait in line for assistance. So all that happens is that you get a message telling you how long a wait there is. And then the wait is always longer than the estimate. In other words, the procedure, contrary to the description, doesn't let you schedule a time for them to call you back. We live in an age of poor service, but this one takes the cake. I live with it because the phone cost me only $10, and the service is cheap enough to deter me from going elsewhere, where I'd probably have to buy another phone at a rather steeper price.)

Anyway, thanks again for your reply.

 

[olbriar]

As an alternative to seeking help though their online or phone you might try asking for assistance at a local Verizon outlet. Your wait time could be less, especially if you can manage the visit early on a week day. A one on one with a human with your phone should resolve your problems and eliminate your concerns.

 

[BobXS]

As an alternative to seeking help though their online or phone you might try asking for assistance at a local Verizon outlet. Your wait time could be less, especially if you can manage the visit early on a week day. A one on one with a human with your phone should resolve your problems and eliminate your concerns.

Thanks for the advice.

I'm a little reluctant to try it though. I've been in the local Verizon store twice before, and the people there honestly didn't seem to know what they were doing. There was a definite air that they were bigger beginners than I was.

I will say, though, that back when I had a flip phone and encountered a problem in a different city, the Verizon staff were very helpful.

For now, I think I'll first try a middle-of-the-night call to Verizon's help line. If I can get through without an hour's wait, the person on the other end should at least be able to tell me whether the telephone number in the notification in fact belongs to Verizon.

But thanks again.