What Information Is Stored on a SIM Card?

A SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card has a data storage of 8 KB up to 256 KB. It can be used by the carrier to store the following information:

• ICCID (Integrated Circuit Card IDentifier) - See "What Is the ICCID Number on My Phone" for more information.
• IMSI (International Mobile Subscriber Identity) - See "What Is the IMSI number on My Phone" for more information.
• MSISDN (Mobile Subscriber Integrated Services Digital Network number) - The phone number associated with the SIM card. Note that cellular network does not rely on the MSISDN for identification. The network uses the IMSI number on the SIM card for identification. The IMSI number is mapped to your mobile account in carrier's HLR (Home Location Register) database.
• Preferred Networks - A list of preferred networks to be used when you travel outside your carriers network.
• PIN (Personal Identification Number) - A password to protect against theft.
• Advice of Charge - This estimates the cost of mobile services for your phone.
• Authentication Key: - This is a unique value for each SIM that authenticates it for the network it’s running on.
• Mobile Country Code - This one is pretty aptly-named–it shows which country you’re calling from.
• Local Area Identity - This is another identifying code combined with your phone number and mobile country code.
• Service Dialing Number - These are numbers that can be dialed to tell you things like your current balance.
• Service Provider Name - This is the name of your mobile operator.
• Short Message Service Center - This is what delivers your text messages.
• PUK (Personal Unblocking Key) - This is the code needed to open your phone if you keep putting in the wrong PIN.
• Voice-added Services - These are any additional services for your phone that you’ve purchased.
• Contacts - Up to 250 contacts may stored on SIM cards used in older phones.
• Text Messages - A portion of text messages may be stored on SIM cards used in older phones.

⇒ Government Certification IDs

⇐ SIM Card Number Generator

⇑ SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) Card

⇑⇑ Cell Phone FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)