This thread is incredible - Maya, I'm so relieved you finally got your application through! As a newcomer to this community, I'm both impressed by everyone's willingness to help and absolutely appalled by what you had to go through just to file for unemployment. The fact that it required multiple browsers, a 3am attempt, a paid service, AND manual intervention from an agent to submit ONE application shows how deliberately obstructive the CONNECT system is. I've been putting off filing my own claim because I've heard horror stories, but seeing all the specific troubleshooting steps everyone shared here (especially the browser switching, SSN formatting, and Claimyr service) gives me a roadmap to follow. This community is amazing - you all turned what should be a simple government process into a collaborative survival guide. Maya, thank you for updating us with your success story. It proves that persistence pays off even when the system seems designed to defeat you. I'm definitely saving this entire thread as my DEO battle plan!

As someone who's been following this thread from the beginning, I'm absolutely thrilled that Maya finally got her application through! This entire conversation should be required reading for anyone dealing with the DEO's CONNECT system. What strikes me most is how this community turned an individual's frustrating experience into a comprehensive resource that will help countless others. Maya, your determination to keep trying despite all the roadblocks and then taking the time to update everyone with your solution is exactly what makes this community so valuable. The combination of everyone's tips - from browser switching to the 3am strategy to the Claimyr service - shows that sometimes it really does take a village to navigate broken government systems. I'm bookmarking this thread as the ultimate DEO survival guide. Your success story gives hope to everyone else struggling with technical errors and proves that persistence plus community support can overcome even the most obstructive bureaucratic systems!

I'm dealing with this exact same issue right now! Just went through the entire ID.me verification process yesterday (what a nightmare that was) and now I'm completely stuck at this authenticator step. No QR code shows up anywhere - just a page asking for a code that I have no way to generate. I've tried everything suggested here - different browsers, clearing cache, incognito mode, reinstalling Google Authenticator multiple times - absolutely nothing works. It's so frustrating because I can see my account is verified through ID.me but I just can't get past this final step. Reading through all the responses here has been such a relief though - knowing this "partial verification state" is a real system bug and not something I'm doing wrong. The fact that multiple people got it resolved by reaching a DEO agent gives me hope. I'm definitely going to try Claimyr tomorrow morning since the regular DEO phone line has been completely useless. I've called probably 40+ times over the past three days and either get a busy signal immediately or get disconnected after waiting on hold for hours. Thanks to Miguel and everyone else for sharing your experiences and the solution - this thread is going to save me so much time and stress! Will update once I hopefully get through to an agent.

I'm going through this exact same issue right now! Just completed my ID.me verification three days ago and I'm completely stuck at the authenticator step - no QR code appears anywhere, just keeps asking for a code I can't generate. I've tried everything mentioned in this thread - different browsers, clearing cache, incognito mode, reinstalling Google Authenticator multiple times - nothing works at all. The regular DEO phone line has been absolutely useless too - called over 60 times and either get busy signals or disconnected after hours on hold. This thread has been such a lifesaver though! Reading about the "partial verification state" bug explains exactly what's happening. It's so frustrating that this is affecting so many people but there's no clear information about it on the DEO website. Based on all the success stories here, I'm definitely going to try Claimyr tomorrow morning. The fact that Miguel, Zainab, and others all got this resolved quickly by reaching an actual DEO agent gives me hope that there's finally a solution. Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences and documenting the fix - this community is incredible when DEO's systems are completely broken! Will update once I hopefully get through to an agent and get my 2FA reset.

Have you tried reaching out to them on social media? Sometimes companies respond faster there. Worth a shot!

I went through this exact same nightmare a few months ago! What finally worked for me was going through the identity verification process again from scratch. Here's what I did: 1) Clear your browser cache and cookies completely 2) Go to ID.ME and start a fresh account verification (don't try to log into your existing account) 3) Use your new phone number during the verification 4) They'll ask you to upload documents again - just do it 5) Once verified with your new number, contact support to merge/transfer your old account data. It's a pain but it worked for me after being locked out for 3 weeks. The whole process took about a week but at least I got back in! Good luck! 🙏

Glad you got it sorted out! This is exactly why I always recommend people try Claimyr when they hit these weird CONNECT system glitches. The work search verification flag issue is super common - DEO doesn't tell you about it but it can completely block your ability to claim weeks even when you're eligible. For anyone else reading this thread with similar problems, don't waste days calling DEO directly. The phone system is designed to frustrate you into giving up. Services like Claimyr are worth every penny when you're dealing with rent and bills piling up.

Welcome to the community @Reginald Blackwell! You're absolutely right about this community being more helpful than official DEO resources. I've been dealing with unemployment issues for months and the collective knowledge here has saved me countless hours of frustration. For anyone new reading this thread - the key takeaways are: 1) DEO emails often come before the system updates, 2) hidden flags like work search verification can block your claiming ability without notice, and 3) services like Claimyr seem to be the most reliable way to actually reach a human who can fix these backend issues. The CONNECT system really does feel like it's designed to discourage people from successfully claiming benefits. Having a community like this where we can share real solutions makes all the difference when you're stressed about bills and rent!

That's awesome that you got approved so quickly! I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - been trying to file for 2 weeks and keep getting error messages. Your post gives me hope that the backdate process actually works. Going to try the CONNECT request form today and take screenshots of all the errors I'm getting. Thanks for sharing your success story!

Just wanted to add my experience for anyone else dealing with this - I had a similar backdate situation last month where CONNECT kept crashing during my initial application. What really helped was being very specific in my request about the technical issues. I wrote down every single error message exactly as it appeared, the dates and times I tried to access the system, and even mentioned which browsers I tried (Chrome, Firefox, Edge). The key thing is showing you made "good faith efforts" to file on time but were prevented by system issues beyond your control. DEO seems to approve these requests pretty routinely when you have solid documentation. Don't give up if you don't hear back right away - sometimes it takes the full 10 business days, but the backdating does work when you follow the proper process!