'Burner Phones'...
 

OK...Did a quick search on this, my Fav site..to see if anyone has experience about 'burner phones'..the use of..or need to.
This may not be so much of an issue for US citizens,.. or maybe it could be, but with the current political enviroment, has anyone purchased and used the so called 'burner phones'.?
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If this post is out of the TRF regulations ..then please don't 'ban' me for speaking out and let me know that this is 'Faux Pas'.. - Then just delete it..!!

Are you looking for a Breaking Bad type second career?

A 'must' for smugglers of all kinds.

Can't help you with your future plans Thomas :chuckle:, in Australia, every carrier requires you to have 100 points of ID (passport, photo card, medicare card, etc.) to register and activate a mobile service.:cheers:

Thanks Andad..
Different situation here in No.Amer....

...or for just for us Citizens who happen to have a different 'view' of the 'current state of affairs'..and being 'singled' out for and detained for that?.

A testy point of view.!

Ever since Walmart installed systemwide in-store video surveillance there are very few true burners available.


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Who needs to buy a 'burner'?
There would see to be plenty of stolen phones available.
As evidenced by the numbers in our two countries alone.

In 2023, around 1.4 million mobile phones were stolen across the US.
In London, street thefts saw a 150 percent increase, with 78,000 phones reported stolen between Sept. 2023-2024.

You can buy them here at any phone kiosk at a mall. Some have recommended using them when traveling to avoid searches of your phone and social media accounts. I’m sure there are other nefarious uses :chuckle:

There are stores in the Chicago area that sell pre-paid phones with no ID requirement. If you pay cash it's an untraceable "burner" phone. But, I don't think they intend to sell burner phones, rather I think they are accessing consumers with no credit or bad credit who can't get cell service the conventional way.

Unfortunately due to tariffs their prices will no longer be “burn friendly”…

https://media3.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2...iBwY/giphy.gif
Couldn’t help myself. This conversation reminds me of the wire.

I would not do it and if someone starts monitoring me I say go ahead and be prepared to be bored to death.

Possibly the greatest tv show ever.

Do you really have something to hide?

tin foil hat required?

I do find it concerning that your cell phone number is far too often required from folks who I would choose not to have it. The same folks who often share and sell customer information to hundreds (at the very least) of third parties.

Also the idea that my cell phone number identifies me is troublesome as I do not own the cell phone number, I merely renting it from a large corporation on a monthly basis. There are a number of reasons that could lead to losing that cell number and customer service can be lacking in my s
Just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean they are not following me:cheers:

The point being...is the current political environment..none of which can be discussed on here but is prevalent throughout the media and a reality which im sure you're aware.
Officials have the right to inspect your
electronic devices and as been reported in some cases, those devices have been confiscated and persons detained because of what info etc is on there phone contrary to the current state of affairs. Hence the desire for 'anonymity'/ Neutral

As you are in the 51st state, you have nothing to fear (just kidding, don't flame me).

The US border has long been a place where everyone's rights are suspended. The courts ruled in 1976 (United States v. Martinez-Fuerte) that the border cops don't need reasonable suspicion to search anyone they please at checkpoints. While this is supposed to be nonintrusive unless they have reasonable suspicion, in practice the border cops think they have a constitutional right to search you and your phone. If the border officers ask to search your phone there's nothing you can do to stop them. If you don't unlock it they will seize it and hack into it later. It's unAmerican in my view, but the border cops think violating our right to privacy is good for us.

If you are traveling into the US and don't want pictures of your scantily clad wife and bank records to be ogled by a border agent you'd be better off adding a line to your existing wireless service for a crappy phone, with no PII apps, that you can hand over to the border cops if you are the unlucky passenger they pull out of the crowd. Leave your tablets and other devices at home.:cheers:

Exactly my point.
Thx

Fully understand. :cheers:

I’ve thought about this lately too, and can’t work out whether it’s more discreet to go in with a newish phone, or no phone at all (just get one once there). The concern is being detained and turned back if found critical of the leader. Reportedly happening to some Aussies visiting. Maybe they were just yobbos, or maybe it really is getting tighter and grimmer.

Hiding something and keeping something private are two different things.

I need a filter for a Hoover Max Extract Pressure Pro Model 60 :lol:

A lot of effort for very little outcome for me. If you have an issue you will still have it with a burner. Just change your number if want.

No, a burner solves the issues. Returning from overseas my wife was picked out of the crowd. They questioned foreign sounding names in her contact list and made her open her banking app so that they could inspect her balances. Why? Fishing expedition. A burner won't have any apps with personal information.

We are both Ameircan citizens. Born and raised. Veterans. It made us nervous that we were going to need to hire lawyers at great cost to argue the negative against people who care nothing for rights, or right and wrong. I imagine it would be traumatic for foreign visitors to undergo the same inspection. If I was visiting the US on holiday from a foreign country I wouldn't bring any devices through a US checkpoint that had any PII other than a contact list.

Some good reasons already mentioned here - but if you have a phone added to an existing account, you won't escape scrutiny at border crossings.

The IMEI alone will ID all others sharing the carrier account. It simply adds another line of inquiry for CBP.


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Sort of begs the question … would they be suspicious if you were traveling with no phone … I mean who does that?:chuckle::justkiddi

How about a burger phone?

I thought that kind of thing was only happening to foreigners which would be my case.

Wow that’s alarming but not shocking. I have to admit I cross the Canadian land border 6-12 times a year and have never had inquires into my devices. I haven’t been pulled over in a decade but I use to routinely as a younger kid. Thankfully there’s no naked pics of the wife haha they will find a disturbing amount of watch pics and kid pics.