Verification Puzzle Freezing

A workaround I've found that can possibly help anyone locked out...I use my phone's hotspot wifi instead of my wired connection, and for some reason that allows me to get through the puzzle (with 3 pieces this time, not 5 pieces). It is very inconvenient to do this, and i sure hope someone at EA sees this thread to help fix the issue, but if you are locked out and want to play, try this method.

On another forum, ,a user who had the same issue said they also get through by purposefully failing the puzzle right away (before it freezes), then the second puzzle works ok (doesn't time out). I have not tried that method as the last thing i need is for EA to ban me for a puzzle they won't fix. It would be weeks before that would be resolved...

Hope this helps, until the actual solution is figured out!