Perplexity Pro users say their Samsung Galaxy Store promo access was suddenly revoked

Perplexity is apparently cracking down on its Samsung Galaxy Store promotion, and it’s not going well. Users who legitimately redeemed the free 12-month Pro subscription through the Galaxy Store are now receiving emails claiming they “abused” the offer and having their access yanked without warning.

The email, which Perplexity sent to multiple users this week, reads like an accusation rather than a customer service message. It claims recipients didn’t obtain the promotion “through the intended flow” and demands documentation to restore access, including device purchase receipts, screen recordings of the Galaxy Store promo page, and “sensitive device information.”

Here’s where it gets messy. The Samsung promotion was US-only, but lists circulated online showing people how to use VPNs and fake regional settings to claim the offer anyway. Now Perplexity’s apparently trying to clean house, but they’re sweeping up actual Samsung customers in the process.

“I got it via Samsung store, 100% legit,” one Reddit user wrote, adding they’re “not begging for it back” since they already switched to Gemini Pro.

Samsung’s community forums are also filling up with complaints from people who insist they followed the official redemption process. One user described spending “an hour arguing with them that this is insane,” while also noting that as a senior, they have “no idea how to provide” the documentation Perplexity is requesting.

The tone of the emails has struck a nerve. Multiple users described them as “rude and accusatory,” with one saying it made them feel “like a criminal” for simply taking advantage of a promotion Samsung actively advertised.

Making matters worse, some users report they can only reach Perplexity’s AI chatbot “Sam” for support, not actual human representatives.

But the drama doesn’t stop there. Pro users are also reporting that Perplexity has stopped remembering their model preferences in the browser. The platform now resets to the default “Best” model with every new query, even though it used to persist across sessions. I also noticed the same behavior during my brief usage today. Some users suspect it’s an intentional cost-saving measure disguised as a bug.

To me, it seems like Perplexity became a little too generous with its free AI promotions and might be bleeding money. The company recently went after Airtel subscribers in India who claimed the free offer, suddenly requiring them to add card details to continue using what was supposed to be a no-strings-attached trial.

That policy change came without advance notice, just a direct email with the subject line “Action Required: Add a card to keep your Perplexity Pro trial.” Sound familiar?

The Samsung partnership was supposed to give US Galaxy owners a full year of Perplexity Pro (a $200 value) just for downloading the app from the Galaxy Store. No promo codes, no payment info required.

If Perplexity wanted to crack down on VPN abuse, they should’ve focused on the source of fraudulent redemptions, not thrown legitimate customers under the bus with a blanket suspension wave. As one Reddit user put it, “If a code redeems successfully and works for weeks, it’s not reasonable to expect end users to verify whether it was ‘intended’ for a specific promo flow.”

Now users are caught in the middle of what appears to be Perplexity trying to walk back promises it can’t afford to keep. That said, we’ll keep an eye out for any further developments and will update the article accordingly.

We stand out from the tech-media crowd because we break news stories; we mainly bring you stuff that you won’t find anywhere in the mainstream tech media. Our stories have been picked up by some of the world’s most popular websites and media outlets—more info is available here.