SIM card
smartcard for cellular devices containing authentication information necessary for connecting to the cell network
A SIM card or SIM (subscriber identity module) is a type of integrated circuit, often in the form of a smart card. They are intended to securely store an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) number and its related key, which are used to identify and authenticate subscribers on mobile telephone devices (such as mobile phones, tablets, and laptops). SIMs are also able to run apps and to store arbitrary information like address book contact information, and may be protected using a PIN code to prevent unauthorized use.
These SIM cards are always used on GSM phones; for CDMA phones, they are needed only for LTE-capable handsets. SIM cards are also used in various satellite phones, smart watches, computers, or cameras. The first SIM cards were the size of credit and bank cards; sizes were reduced several times over the years, usually keeping electrical contacts the same, to fit smaller-sized devices. SIMs are transferable between different mobile devices by removing the card itself.
Technically, the actual physical card is known as a universal integrated circuit card (UICC); this smart card is usually made of PVC with embedded contacts and semiconductors, with the SIM as its primary component. In practice the term "SIM card" is still used to refer to the entire unit and not simply the IC. A SIM contains a unique serial number, integrated circuit card identification (ICCID), international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) number, security authentication and ciphering information, temporary information related to the local network, a list of the services the user has access to, and four passwords: a personal identification number (PIN) for ordinary use, and a personal unblocking key (PUK) for PIN unlocking as well as a second pair (called PIN2 and PUK2 respectively) which are used for managing fixed dialing number and some other functionality. In Europe, the serial SIM number (SSN) is also sometimes accompanied by an international article number (IAN) or a European article number (EAN) required when registering online for the subscription of a prepaid card.As of 2020, eSIM is superseding physical SIM cards in some domains, including cellular telephony.
The public source identifies “SIM card” as smartcard for cellular devices containing authentication information necessary for connecting to the cell network. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around card, smartcard and cellular.
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Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q230110. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020.
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This entry incorporates text from “SIM card” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.