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iPhone 5 with no Social Security #...?

Turnpike

Turnpike

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Oct 2, 2011
597
330
New York City!
Without taking up the time getting into the "SS#" part of the equation, what kind of options are there to get a iPhone 5 service WITHOUT having a SS#? Buying the iPhone used or new off the shelf is no problem, and actually the data part is the only part really needed of the service.

I know two people who are in the city (international students-they will get temp SS#'s, but it will take a few months to get them, at least.) I know of having an ATT iphone 4s on the data only package, but that service only gets you 2g speeds, which is too slow for most of the things the phone is used for.

So, IGNORING SS# related comments, putting people on my plan, iPhone 4s and older models, and 2/3G speed solutions, and keeping the problem solving focused to this part of the problem: (iPhone 5, with 4G service, no SS# but new/used phone is fine, any carrier, any deposit amount) does anyone know of a solution? Data only, or data with phone, though data is the only important part.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions! :)
 
Here in Texas I have the same problem as you, but I managed to get an iPhone 5 anyways. I have a cousin who was also in the same situation and managed to get an iPhone 4S last year. The issue isn't that you can't get a phone without a social, it's just that the employees probably don't know that you can actually do that.

So, if you want an iPhone 5, walk into any carrier's store and just tell them that you want to sign up with them to get an iPhone, but that you rather pay a deposit. Don't tell them that you don't have a social, if they ask say you're a student. All they'll ask for you is your ID, and then another form of identificatoin to prove that you're, well, you. This could be a deposit stub from a job, your school ID, a bill with your name, etc. It can be done, you just need to talk to the right person. If they refuse, just go to another store.

The only issue will be that you'll have to pay a deposit, and depending on the carrier it could be between $0-$500. I manage to sign up with Sprint without putting a deposit for some reason, but in the end I wasn't satisfied with the service and so I had to return the phone and cancel my contract.

If this seems like it'll be an issue another thing you can do is have a friend, or a relative add you to their family plan and you can then get the iPhone 5. The issue however will be when you plan to upgrade since you'll need their info, and who knows if they'll provide it to you, and also the bill. If you or they are late on their bills, you will have issues, but it's an option.
 
Anyone fancy explaining this to a non-American?

From reading this I gather that, to buy an iPhone in America, you need a 'social security number' which Wikipedia tells me is a number given to American citizens (is the next step all Americans being branded with a barcode?!).

So, only American citizens can buy things in America? Are you forever reciting your SS number at the till? And what's the point? Does it matter if a non-US citizen buys something in the US?
 
tekno said:
Anyone fancy explaining this to a non-American?

From reading this I gather that, to buy an iPhone in America, you need a 'social security number' which Wikipedia tells me is a number given to American citizens (is the next step all Americans being branded with a barcode?!).

So, only American citizens can buy things in America? Are you forever reciting your SS number at the till? And what's the point? Does it matter if a non-US citizen buys something in the US?
Click to expand...

Calm down tekno- you misundersand. Anybody can walk in and buy the iPhone over the counter, the SS# is required in setting up a service contract with the carrier to verify a certain level of credit before the carrier lets you loose with a device on their system.

Now for the rest- thanks for your input so far, does that mean that with buying a phone at full retail and putting down a huge deposit, they will set it up without ID? (Since the one person I have in mind doesnt yet have a State ID card)
 
You need a SSN (social security number) to buy a subsidized iPhone (discounted price of $199) with a carrier contract. From you full-filling that contract, the carrier will make up the discounted difference over time by you paying the monthly bill. The contracted service is a post-paid service, meaning you use it first, then at the end of the billing month, they charge you. It's similar to a credit card, where you have to pay the bill after you have made your purchase. The main reason they want the SSN is because they want to make sure that person has a good record of paying the bills. In comparison, a prepaid phone is when you pay it first and can only use the amount of minutes within the amount of time you have paid for and that does not require a SSN.

Now if you do not have a SSN, you can still buy an iPhone without a contract, at full price. I think they start at $649.

I hope I made it clear.
 
Last edited:
tekno said:
Anyone fancy explaining this to a non-American?

From reading this I gather that, to buy an iPhone in America, you need a 'social security number' which Wikipedia tells me is a number given to American citizens (is the next step all Americans being branded with a barcode?!).

So, only American citizens can buy things in America? Are you forever reciting your SS number at the till? And what's the point? Does it matter if a non-US citizen buys something in the US?
Click to expand...

I'm sure every country have some type of (Social Security Number) way to account for residents.
 
tekno said:
Anyone fancy explaining this to a non-American?

From reading this I gather that, to buy an iPhone in America, you need a 'social security number' which Wikipedia tells me is a number given to American citizens (is the next step all Americans being branded with a barcode?!).

So, only American citizens can buy things in America? Are you forever reciting your SS number at the till? And what's the point? Does it matter if a non-US citizen buys something in the US?
Click to expand...

I have social security and I am not an American . You got ss# if you work in us
 
Turnpike said:
Without taking up the time getting into the "SS#" part of the equation, what kind of options are there to get a iPhone 5 service WITHOUT having a SS#? Buying the iPhone used or new off the shelf is no problem, and actually the data part is the only part really needed of the service.

I know two people who are in the city (international students-they will get temp SS#'s, but it will take a few months to get them, at least.) I know of having an ATT iphone 4s on the data only package, but that service only gets you 2g speeds, which is too slow for most of the things the phone is used for.

So, IGNORING SS# related comments, putting people on my plan, iPhone 4s and older models, and 2/3G speed solutions, and keeping the problem solving focused to this part of the problem: (iPhone 5, with 4G service, no SS# but new/used phone is fine, any carrier, any deposit amount) does anyone know of a solution? Data only, or data with phone, though data is the only important part.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions! :)
Click to expand...

Actually they can't require a SS#. If you tell them that you don't want to give your SS# they can activate a line with the last 4 digits. But you will need something else to ID you to pull credit.
 
tekno said:
Anyone fancy explaining this to a non-American?

From reading this I gather that, to buy an iPhone in America, you need a 'social security number' which Wikipedia tells me is a number given to American citizens (is the next step all Americans being branded with a barcode?!).

So, only American citizens can buy things in America? Are you forever reciting your SS number at the till? And what's the point? Does it matter if a non-US citizen buys something in the US?
Click to expand...

Every country has a similar form of tax identification number.
Where do you live that they don't have something similar as a taxpayers ID number?
And what is a till?
 
Applejuiced said:
Every country has a similar form of tax identification number.
Where do you live that they don't have something similar as a taxpayers ID number?
And what is a till?
Click to expand...

I live in the UK and yes, we have a taxpayers number, but it's only needed when paying tax/starting new employment/dealing with government departments. It's not needed when buying a mobile telephone.

Using nothing but my Mac's thesaurus (something I suspect you have also),
Till: cash register, cash drawer(s), cashbox, strongbox; checkout.

For a 'god', you don't seem particularly omniscient (your thesaurus might come in handy again there).

----------
gentlefury said:
to ID you to pull credit.
Click to expand...

Ok, so this Social Security Number is needed simply to prove your ID in order for the retailer to then check your credit worthiness?! This now makes sense.
 
I used to be an international student in the US. Didn't have SSN since I didn't work (you can only get one if you work in school, since it's illegal for you to work outside of school).

You don't need a SSN to buy a phone. You just need it if you want to sign up a contract with them. If you don't have a SSN, you'll have to put down a deposit. Mine was $500 at that time.

I'm pretty sure you can still get the subsidized phone even without SSN. My friend did. She was an International student, no SSN, and she put down a $500 deposit. It wasn't an iPhone though. It was a windows phone or such. That was in 2010 with T-Mo.
 
SSN is needed to check your credit. In USA, we have so many people who don't pay bills on time, don't pay their mortgage, and buy more stuff on their credit card then they can earn. It's needed for a contract phone, since the carrier pays the upfront cost of the phone.

There are certainly other ways to check credit history, but easiest is SSN. They must ask permission to do a credit check, and SSN is the easiest way to do it.
 
It's really difficult to avoid voice. If you do want data only, your best bet is to look at gsm mvno providers. It's not likely to be cheaper than voice+data and the person has to bring their own phone. Since the person will have to pay full price for a phone (since they're without ss#), this part won't be an issue.
Some people have had luck using their ipad's sim, but ymmv.
Turnpike said:
Data only, or data with phone, though data is the only important part.
Click to expand...
 
tekno said:
Anyone fancy explaining this to a non-American?

From reading this I gather that, to buy an iPhone in America, you need a 'social security number' which Wikipedia tells me is a number given to American citizens (is the next step all Americans being branded with a barcode?!).

So, only American citizens can buy things in America? Are you forever reciting your SS number at the till? And what's the point? Does it matter if a non-US citizen buys something in the US?
Click to expand...

loll not too far from the barcode my friend. Who needs microchips implanted when you got iPhones/smartphones attached to your ss#. Mark of the beast is working overtime. :D
 
tekno said:
I live in the UK and yes, we have a taxpayers number, but it's only needed when paying tax/starting new employment/dealing with government departments. It's not needed when buying a mobile telephone.

Using nothing but my Mac's thesaurus (something I suspect you have also),
Till: cash register, cash drawer(s), cashbox, strongbox; checkout.

For a 'god', you don't seem particularly omniscient (your thesaurus might come in handy again there).

----------



Ok, so this Social Security Number is needed simply to prove your ID in order for the retailer to then check your credit worthiness?! This now makes sense.
Click to expand...

The social is used when pulling your credit history in order to sign a contract.
And guess what? I'm not using a Mac nor felt the need to search. We just never use that word as cash register in the US, that's all.
 
Applejuiced said:
The social is used when pulling your credit history in order to sign a contract.
And guess what? I'm not using a Mac nor felt the need to search. We just never use that word as cash register in the US, that's all.
Click to expand...

actually Juiced, Till is used in the US...if you happen to be at a Walmart or grocery store while they're changing shifts or cashiers you'll hear the word being used...the Till is literally the black plastic drawer that the cash goes in inside the register...you know the thing they hide the hundred dollar bills under
 
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