software for the Samsung Gear VR virtual reality headset, which blocks its use with the Galaxy Note 7 for safety reasons. The headset had been included with some units of the phone as a promotional offer. On 14 October 2016, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration banned the Note 7 from being taken aboard any airline flight, even if powered off. Qantas, Virgin Australia and Garuda Indonesia issued similar bans, while Transport Canada issued a notice stating that the Note 7 was banned from flights under Special Provision 137 prohibitions, banning the carriage of damaged or defective lithium-ion batteries onto flights. In response to these air travel bans, Samsung announced it would set up dedicated kiosks at selected airports in order to allow travelers to exchange or receive a refund for their Galaxy Note 7 on-site before departing, rather than having it confiscated by security or airport staff. On 20 December 2016, a Virgin America flight from San Francisco to Boston was nearly diverted mid-flight after it was discovered that a passenger on the plane had been operating a Wi-Fi hotspot with the SSID "Samsung Galaxy Note7_1097". However, it was later discovered that the hotspot was a hoax and that no passenger had actually brought a Galaxy Note 7 onboard. Disabling of functionality On 4 November 2016, the New Zealand Telecommunications Forum announced it would ban all Galaxy Note 7 phones from use on local mobile networks beginning on 18 November, enforced via IMEI blacklist. On 30 November, Samsung announced that Galaxy Note 7 devices would be banned from Australian wireless networks effective 15 December 2016. In December 2016, Samsung announced its intent to cripple the functionality of unreturned Galaxy Note 7 phones in Canada and the United States via software updates. In Canada, an update restricted charge capacity and blocked the phone from connecting to any wireless networks or using Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. In the United States, the update blocked the devices from being recharged in order to "eliminate their ability to work as mobile devices". Verizon announced that it would refuse to distribute this update due to the "added risk this could pose to Galaxy Note 7 users that do not have another device to switch to" because it would "make it impossible to contact family, first responders or medical professionals in an emergency situation", especially during the