Worcester Public Schools Urge Families To Replace Now-Recalled Verizon Hotspots Given To Students
WORCESTER (CBS) - The Verizon internet hotspots distributed to some Worcester Public School students have been recalled.
The school district says the hotspots were give to students for remote learning. But Verizon has informed customers of the hotspots that the battery can overheat and potentially lead to a fire.
Superintendent Maureen Binienda informed families about recall on Thursday. According to Binienda, families can call Verizon at 800-540-4263 to get a different model free of charge.
"The recalled hotspots can be identified by their dark navy color and plastic oval shape that's about 3.5 inches wide and 2.25 inches tall. 'Verizon' is printed below the digital display window on the front of the device," said Binienda.
She noted that Verizon released an update that will automatically install on the affected hotspots. The update will disable the charging of the battery in order to prevent it from overheating, but hotspots will only work while being plugged in.
Binienda says students should should turn off the hotspots and unplug it when they are done using it.