Google has fixed issue of locked bootloaders on Pixel 2 devices

About a week ago we reported on a bug encountered by some who bought the Google Pixel 2 from the Google Store. The phones arrived with a locked bootloader, which prevented the devices from being rooted. Google quickly responded to the reports on the Google Product Forums and stated that a fix would be on the way.

It appears as though that fix is now available and those with locked bootloaders are being recommended to factory reset your phone to fix the issue.

Marked as Fixed
Please factory reset your device and make sure it connected to the internet during setup as this issue has been resolved.

Factory Reset:

1. Settings
2. System
3. Reset Options
4. Erase all data (factory reset)

It’s unfortunate that the only way to get the unlocked bootloader is to factory reset the phone, since you’ll have to spend time setting it back up. However, multiple people in the issue tracker have reported going through with the factory reset and the issue seems to be well and truly fixed.