It’s always a spectacle when giants trip over their own feet. Verizon, the company that claims to be at the bleeding edge of connectivity for 114.2 million subscribers, recently gave us all a stark reminder of what happens when technology goes on vacation. Last week, Verizon’s almighty network decided to take a nap, leaving countless Americans staring at their shiny smartphones in bewilderment, stuck in what can only be described as the tech equivalent of purgatory: “SOS” mode.
For those blissfully unaware, SOS mode is when your phone decides that civilization has ended and the only remaining thing it can do is scream for help—an emergency call lifeline through any network that’s feeling charitable. Forget contacting mom, checking that recipe online, or doom-scrolling through X. During this outage, users were reduced to that glaring icon, only good enough to call for help—presumably, to complain about Verizon.
