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SIM Cards Must Die

ilyabirman.net

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Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#101

Post by 18pfsmt »

bbrizzi wrote: post #79

I'm afraid the author of this blog post doesn't know what a SIM card is. First of all, it's a secure element: it allows authentication of the user's credentials with the cell phone. SIMs and smart cards in general provide security at the hardware level as well as the software level (using Triple DES encryption). Also, they are essential in NFC: that standard is developed around the SIM card and the ISO 14443 standard…

FYI, SIM cards aren't necessary for NFC. In fact, it is only the carriers that would prefer the SIM be used as the secure element, as they have control over it. Other potential NFC players would prefer the secure element be separate, so that the carrier doesn't have control over NFC-based transactions. And, ISO 14443 is not directly related NFC, which is governed by ISO 18092 and ISO 21481.

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#102

Post by joelhaasnoot »

stoolpigeon wrote: post #18
sepposade wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Each phone could have a built in key for signing. You could tell operators to not allow any other phone except for yours (which has this key) to access your account. Not a problem.

What happens here - is the phone itself becomes the sim card. That is troublesome on a number of levels. I'd rather push those functions to a little piece of plastic that is easy to move between handsets. "You could tell operators"... How and where? When I'm in Thailand on vacation, I want data but I don't want to have to worry about registering my phone - I just go to kiosk and get a sim. When I was in Ethiopia a fe…

There are some countries you do have to give extra documentation, and often providers will rip you off by giving you more airtime only if you register.

Funny you mention Ethiopia, the telecom there is completely state controlled, and it has been used to thwart opposition (listen in on calls, shut down complete SMS, etc). It's one of the many "remnants" of the communist regime. Supposedly Orange was coming in to manage and change that however...

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#103

Post by nmcfarl »

kamjam wrote: post #87
gnu8 wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Americans don't know that because their phone companies forbid that practice. AT&T doesn't even bother to move your SIM card from your old iPhone to your new iPhone when you upgrade, they just give you a new card.

Really, they give you a new sim on upgrade? I can understand this if you are upgrading TO an iPhone since you need a micro SIM, but rather pointless otherwise. I think I've had the same SIM card for about 6-7 years now!

My experience with AT&T is they've always given me a new SIM, when buying a new phone from them, but I've also bought raw sim's from them with no problem.

I think they just write the "New Phone" script for their employees, with a new sim, so the steps,are always the same. Less chances to mess things up when there are less choices.

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#104

Post by joelhaasnoot »

kamjam wrote: post #62
rlpb wrote: post #51

I think the author is conflating SIM cards with vendor lock-in. Phones locked to SIM cards from a particular carrier are not good. If you want them to die, then fine - but that's got nothing to do with SIM cards. SIM cards as authentication tokens work just fine. My phone takes SIM cards from any carrier. If I want to switch carriers, the new carrier just sends me a new SIM card. Get rid of SIM cards, and you're goin…

In the UK now (possibly the EU) at the end of your contract (normally 18-24 months) the carrier has to unlock your phone now, my brother just came to the end of his contract and had his iPhone unlocked for free.

In the Netherlands, even on prepaid they are required to do so after 12 months.

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#105

Post by dfox »

kamjam wrote: post #86
CaptainZapp wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Going out on a limb here, but Didn't the original GSM phones work in a similar way, with no SIM and some sort of mapping to a phone number at the carrier end? As far as I know (and recall), SIM was always part of the GSM specifications. The first SIMs where credit card sized. Later generations where still credit card sized, but with a perforated breakout for the SIM as we know it (mostly). The predecessor system (ana…

Ahhh, it was the old analogue phones I was thinking of. I never had one, my brother did though. I remember the big sim card and the perforated ones too :)

And while NMT phones didn't use easily (and user) replaceable SIM, they were paired to operator/number not by some database but by contents of replaceable EPROM chip in them. SIM cards were introduced not to make changing carriers possible, but easier and also more secure (NMT phones could be cloned without direct access to phone, only by eavesdropping on signaling channel).

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#106

Post by angersock »

JoeAltmaier wrote: post #96
lwhi wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yep, a SIM card gives freedom from networks and the ability to change numbers easily and use pay as you go services when travelling. There's no way killing SIM cards would be a good thing.

This is currently hung on the SIM. Couldn't it just as well be hung on a web service, or paypal account? Why make it physical? This screams for virtualization.

The nice thing about having a physical object is that I can hand it easily to someone else, I can destroy it, I can save it, and I can do all these things when my service provider has disconnected me.

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#107

Post by aden_76 »

Apple would love to kill the sim card. They have numerous patents around technologies that will enable the SIM card to become software based. http://www.nfcworld.com/2011/11/09/311213/apple-patents-sim-... The carriers won't want this at all. They are trying to move payments from a card (with a chip) to another card (with a very similar chip i.e. the SIM) but this feels pointless to me. The SIM and the plastic payment card have had their day.

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#108

Post by Spearchucker »

bigiain wrote: post #82
kamjam wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This and Panmans comments were my first thought when I read that piece. I like the SIM card. When I went backpacking round the world I was able to pick up a pay as you go SIM card from a local store in any country, load it with credit and pop it in my phone and I'm all good to go. None of this sharing information from my phone business. You don't need to know my identity or payment information. I don't want the hassl…

I find the opposite version of that quite useful too - swapping SIMs lets me change my phone hardware out independently of my carrier/phonenumber. I can (with a $2 microsim adaptor) switch between an iPhone, a Galaxy SII, and occasionally a tiny not-very-"smart"phone-but-perfectly-adequate-for-voice-and-text Huewei device. Phone calls and text messages just arrive at whatever device I've got my SIM in.

Agree with the general sentiment. The down side is something I'm waiting (hoping) for someone to fix. If I get a text message on one phone I can't get to it when I put the SIM into my other phone.

It'd be awesome if there was an operator-netural, handset-neutral, multi-platform and secure cloud-based SMS sync service.

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#109

Post by a3camero »

Drbble wrote: post #95
kalleboo wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> does the CDMA module only work if you bought the phone from a CDMA network operator Yes. They program it with your subscriber number at purchase. Technically they could reprogram phones not sold by them with your subscriber number, but they don't (to force you to give them more money). There does exist a CDMA version of the SIM (RUIM? something like that). China Mobile uses it, and I think au/kddi do too. American…

I am surprised they allows that. That sounds like a far more obvious antitrust violation than putting an IE icon on the Windows desktop.

It gets worse in Canada. They carrier lock the phones to the brands. There's a big phone company called Telus that has a brand called Koodo and you can't swap phones between them even though it's actually the same network. All the joys of fake competition with none of the compatibility!

Re: SIM Cards Must Die

#110

Post by nuclear_eclipse »

Spearchucker wrote: post #108
bigiain wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I find the opposite version of that quite useful too - swapping SIMs lets me change my phone hardware out independently of my carrier/phonenumber. I can (with a $2 microsim adaptor) switch between an iPhone, a Galaxy SII, and occasionally a tiny not-very-"smart"phone-but-perfectly-adequate-for-voice-and-text Huewei device. Phone calls and text messages just arrive at whatever device I've got my SIM in.

Agree with the general sentiment. The down side is something I'm waiting (hoping) for someone to fix. If I get a text message on one phone I can't get to it when I put the SIM into my other phone. It'd be awesome if there was an operator-netural, handset-neutral, multi-platform and secure cloud-based SMS sync service.

Google Voice.
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