Is EE down? Users experience outages of network and phone signal - what error 38 means and how to fix it

Mobile users across the UK are experiencing trouble accessing EE’s mobile network, after the company reported outages.

The company has spoken out about the issues which have been restricting access to its network, including mobile signal.

People in towns around the UK have not been able to access the network since lunchtime, with EE working to get it back up and running as soon as possible.

Where have EE outages been reported?

While the outages have been reported across the country, there does appear to be hotspots were numerous customers are having issues.

This includes London, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

What is the issue with EE network?

Users have been reporting that they have not been able to access any phone signal since around 12.00pm.

The issues have also affected access to data internet such as 4G and 5G.

According to Downdetector, 67% of the problems reported relate to an inability to access the internet on their device, while 21% are experiencing issue with sending text messages.

Around 12% of users reporting said that there had been a “total blackout” of all services.

EE has said the issue is currently only being reported on mobile devices, with no issues reported on their broadband or landline services.

Customers are often being faced with an ‘error 38’ code when attempting to access the internet on their device or sent a text message.

What is an error 38 code and how do you fix it?

The error 38 code means you are not able to send messages due to an issue with the network.

Unfortunately for users, this error is often ongoing for quite some time until engineers find a way to fix the problem.

However, there are some steps you can follow to attempt to get it back up and running if you ever experience this issue in the future and believe it may be on your end.

Firstly, you should double check your device is not in airplane mode and has connection to the data network.

If your mobile is connected and you still can’t get a connection, you can try restarting your device to reconnect to the network. Additionally, you can remove and reinsert your sim card before turning your phone on again.

What has EE said?

EE has stayed in contact with customers through its social media channels.

The EE Twitter said: “We are sorry that a number of our customers are having trouble using our mobile services. We’re working to get things back to normal as quickly as possible and will keep this thread updated.”

However, some people are still angry about their lack of access to the network while paying for their airtime contracts.

One said: “Come on @EE I don’t pay OVER £100 a month to not be able to use my mobile unless im in the house on WiFi. Anyone else getting nothing when they leave the house? #EE #EEDown”

Another added: “I’ve had no internet or phone services since 10am this morning. This is a joke.”

Currently there is no timescale for when the issue will be resolved.

However, EE has told customers it will be updating them on the progress of the works on social media channels.