so, long story short: i bought a Pixel 6a to replace my broken 5a. i bought said phone from Amazon, "refurbished and UNLOCKED," needless to say: it was not unlocked; in fact, it was locked by VERIZON.

i call Verizon, hoping for a miracle, wondering if they'll unlock it: they won't.

i start #googling and find a few "unlock" sites; all of which seem very shady, so i look at reviews, forum posts, etc. and finally come acorss one that, according to #SOME people "had good luck with"; the site is "The Unlocking Company."

i give this "company" my imei number, make/model/carrier, and $27: they say they'll have an "unlock code" and "instructions" to me within the next 72 hours.

so the burning question for this community is:

WILL THEY UNLOCK THE PHONE?

i am strongly inclined to think they will either 1) never get back to me or 2) say they can't unlock the phone and give me a partial refund

bets? and has anyone ever tried this before, any luck?