• Doomsider@lemmy.world
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    23 hours ago

    I work with homeless people and I discovered you can no longer make email without a cell phone with any major provider. I can’t get them into their social security without an email.

    I was able to find an email provider that didn’t require a cell phone, but then you had to use a cell phone to get past the verification on the social security site. You are absolutely fucked without a cell phone now.

    • TotalCourage007@lemmy.world
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      21 hours ago

      Thats really twisted. They really want to make not owning a cell spy a crime. Every time I learn something new about Surveillance it makes me more anarchist.

      • HobbitFoot @thelemmy.club
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        18 hours ago

        The problem is that it isn’t an intentional design decision. It just happens to be the easiest way to add a “cost” to sign-up.

      • Tollana1234567@lemmy.today
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        8 hours ago

        i have mail.com, i found that in mid 2000s, before 2021, they use to never delete your account if you dint use it for a while, but now its every 6 months if you dont have activity the account will be deleted. i was initially using that for resume, just a warning if you intend to keep an address and use it once in a while. i had to move some of my stuff back to google around that same time they made changes.

        • Tollana1234567@lemmy.today
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          7 hours ago

          apparently they both will delete your account after 6 months of inactivity. i had mail.com accounts since mid 2000s, and they have deleted quite a few of mines after they made that change(from permanent email before 2020,inactivity to every 6 months), just be warned if you dont use or login, your accts get deleted, they wont help you after that.

      • Doomsider@lemmy.world
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        20 hours ago

        Proton doesn’t work with social security website unfortunately. I ended up using Tuta mail but then later got stuck on Login.gov because it required either a cell phone to verify by taking pictures of ID or a desktop with a camera for a video call.

        Needless to say this is not something someone with no computer skills can accomplish. What is even worse is the local social security office stopped taking walk-ins. The solution? You guessed it, use the social security site to login and request an appointment…

        • Lucelu2@lemmy.zip
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          3 hours ago

          In order to sign up at the SS website on my laptop so I could get an updated statement, I had to use my phone to take pictures of my ID and myself. It kept failing/dropping. It was a giant PIA. Finally got it to work but I had to attempt a couple different days. I don’t know how someone who has no experience with a smart phone and laptop or tablet manages. I think I heard that about 25% SS employees were DOGE’d as well as many field offices closed and it can be incredibly difficult to get an appointment (some are just not staffed), especially if you reside in a rural county. I have to help my husband get signed up on the website and I dread it. He has a very thin frustration threshold with tech he can’t get to work. I foresee his phone flying across the room.

        • NewOldGuard@lemmy.ml
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          14 hours ago

          Damn it’s like they don’t want the system working at all, that’s so convoluted and unnecessary