Ryan Haines / Android Authority
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TL;DR
- A few Pixel users have been unable to get through their lock screen following the September 2026 update.
- The issue appears to affect users with a pattern lock enabled on the lock screen, though at least one user with a PIN also reported a similar problem.
- This bug doesn’t appear to be widespread yet, though Google appears to be aware of the problem.
The recent September Pixel Drop introduced a revamped Pixel VIPs widget, expanded scam protection to other chat apps through Gboard, and fixed several bugs. However, some have found that not everything is working as expected, with reports of users being unable to access their phones appearing online.
According to a Pixel 10 Pro XL owner on Reddit who installed the recent update, the phone refused to recognize the pattern unlock they set up. They reportedly tried booting the phone in safe mode a few times, cleaning the screen, restarting it, and even connecting a mouse with an adapter, but saw no results.
The only thing that seemed to work was a factory reset, the worst-case scenario because it removes all data from the device. For their part, the Pixel 10 Pro XL user says they’ve now switched to PIN-based unlocking. However, another complaint raises concerns about this authentication method as well.
Separately, a Pixel 8a owner appears to have had a similar experience after the September 2026 update, wherein their phone would automatically accept the PIN after only one digit was entered. They said this caused the device to show an incorrect PIN error message. However, they reportedly got through after triggering the “Too many attempts” message and waiting for the timer to run out.
Unfortunately, some other impacted Pixel owners weren’t as lucky, as they had to wipe all device data just to get back into their phones. For what it’s worth, Google is actively reaching out to affected users in those Reddit threads, so we know the company is aware of this issue.
I haven’t seen these issues on my Pixel 6a after the September 2026 update, and the phone recognizes the PIN as it should. This suggests the issue may not be as widespread as some other bugs we’ve seen recently.
Google hasn’t officially commented on these reports yet. We have reached out to the company for a comment and will provide an update when we hear back.
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