Wow, really? I'm so used to just buying SIM cards on street corners, I didn't realise some people had to go through documentation to get them.

Also, in some countries like the US, you can buy 'burner' phones without any need for identification--no contract, no ID.

For a number of years in Norway it used to be the case that you didn't need to show any ID or similar when buying a prepaid sim. Thus it was popular among criminals, and the related scratch cards circulated as virtually as cash. The police raised a stink about this situation, and soon enough you need ID to get them.