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Help s4 blacklisted?

Who did your son buy the S4 from? If from a store, take it back to them for a replacement.

If from another individual, it is possible that it was stolen - if so, you may be out of luck. Check with your local law enforcement to see if they can apprehend the person who sold it to you.
 
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A big suggestion and one I've personally used when I've purchased phones: do it all in person and meet at a cell phone store. Back when I used to buy and sell phones to make a little extra money I would always meet the person at a cell phone store to buy the phone. If they wouldn't agree to meet me at a simple AT&T store to verify the phone was clean, I didn't buy.

I know in your case you purchased online but still follow one golden rule: have them supply the IMEI and a pic of it on the actual phone if possible. If they don't comply then don't buy.
 
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That is indeed an issue and there has been at least one thread here where that happened. A user bought a phone that worked perfectly for a couple of weeks but then it mysteriously stopped working. It turned out that it had been reported stolen after being sold and had been blacklisted.

As far as I am aware, there is no way to protect yourself against this. At least we aren't iPhone users, apparently it's even more rife in that community.
 
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