About unlocking my iPhone

What is AT&T “mall”?  Usually customer service doesn’t unlock iPhones.  You have to use the online unlocking portal.

https://www.att.com/deviceunlock/

Did you do that?

Regarding legal options, you’re limited to binding arbitration, if you’re a customer.  If you’re not, you can try, but it would be small claims at best, as there is no legal requirement for any carrier to unlock a phone.  There is only a voluntary agreement, not a law.  Your best option would be to file a FCC complaint.

Just to add, the phone meets the unlocking eligibility requirements, correct?

Of course, the phone meets the unlocking requirements. I have confirmed with the customer service staff Jainne. She said that it can be unlocked and asked me to provide her imei. She helped me submit the unlocking application.

If Jainne doesn’t come through, you can unlock yourself.  

It should be noted that simply restarting an iPhone may not unlock it.  You typically have to either insert a non-AT&T SIM card, or do a factory reset and restore from a backup.  The phone needs to connect to the Apple activation servers to actually unlock, and I don’t think simply turning an iPhone off and on will force that connection.

What do I have to do to unlock it myself?

Use the online locking portal.

https://www.att.com/deviceunlock/

Hi there, NokoLov1! Let's meet in a Direct Message (DM) to discuss unlocking your phone.

Please check your Direct Message Inbox for a message being sent to you. Look for the chat icon next to the bell icon in the upper right corner of the Forums page.

Also, we invite you to check out what is required to unlock your device from our network. There are important details found under Things to know when you visit AT&T Device Unlock Help - Solutions & FAQs.

Besides device unlock eligibility requirements and instructions, it also contains the device unlock portal that @dwill05 recommended to you in his replies.

Be sure to keep an eye out for the message from us in your DM. We want to look into your device unlock request in order to provide a definite resolution to your experience.

Lar, AT&T Community Specialist

I have a question about this, if I bought a used phone it is an iPhone 12 Pro max, the phone was not paid in full, I want to do things right and pay for the entire device pay for the entire pending contract for the imei of the device and thus be able to unlock it is possible? I want to pay all the outstanding debt of the device, its possible?

@Amellito  No, that is not possible.  Only the person who owes the money can pay it off.  AT&T won’t tell you any information on anyone else’s account, including how much is still owed on the phone, so there is no way for you to find out the remaining balance.