
Just who are burner phones for anyway? - tosseraccount
http://pocketnow.com/2016/03/30/burner-phones-and-you
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otterley
Many countries have required ID to establish service for prepaid mobile phone
accounts for years. It definitely makes the signup process slower and less
convenient for international travelers, but the documentation requirement is
not especially burdensome either, since you're mostly likely going to have
your passport with you anyway.

The people who will likely suffer the most are those on the fringes of society
who aren't carrying foreign passports or government-issued IDs, and, yes,
criminals. But not legitimate international travelers.

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PaulHoule
What about people who are affluent because they save $190 a month by using a
Tracfone instead of a iPhone? They might be able to fund an IRA or afford a
down payment for a house, or pay off their student loans or something.

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coreyp_1
Not disagreeing with your post, but does it really cost $190/mo for an
iPhone?!?

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draker
You can make any plan expensive regardless of type of phone; it all depends on
your monthly data allotment, how often you want to upgrade your phone and
additional services/features.

An AT&T 15gb plan with unlimited calls/texts is $115/month.

Next 12 (upgrade every 12 months) you pay like $40-45/month for an iPhone 6s.
They recommend insurance which is another $8-11/month. Tethering adds
$50-65/month.

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socket0
The end result of such a ban would be to punish legitimate users (those
mentioned in the article, like tourists and the poor). It would do absolutely
nothing against criminals who can persuade anyone desperate enough for money
to buy a burner in their own name. You want drugs? The price just went up by
cash plus a cheap phone.

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jschwartzi
If the ID requirements are tight enough, I could see people stealing
identities to buy phones.

