How to manage and secure your SIM card on a BlackBerry

If you use a BlackBerry® smartphone that contains a SIM card, did you know that you can protect your SIM card with a PIN code? By locking your SIM card with a PIN code, other people cannot use your SIM card in their smartphone. In other words, your SIM card cannot be used in another device unless the SIM card is unlocked first. Here’s a quick overview of how to use this feature if needed.

First off, you might be wondering: why would I want to lock my SIM card? Simply put, this is an easy way to help prevent your SIM card from being used by someone else in another device. For example, if someone found your smartphone, removed the SIM card and put in their phone, they wouldn’t be able to use it since it would need to be unlocked using your SIM PIN code.

A very important thing to remember is enabling SIM card security does not password-lock a BlackBerry smartphone. To prevent someone from accessing your smartphone, set a password in addition to using the SIM card security. For information on how to set a password on your smartphone, check out the user guide.

How to enable SIM Card Security

If you would like to lock your SIM card using a PIN code, complete the following steps. Two important things to keep in mind before considering this are:

1. To get your SIM card PIN code, you will need to contact your wireless service provider.
2. If you type the SIM card PIN code incorrectly and exceed the number of allowed attempts, your SIM card will not function. In the event that this occurs, contact your wireless service provider for assistance.

Before we begin, you’ll need to know which version of the BlackBerry® Device Software or BlackBerry OS you are currently using. If you need help finding this information, check out my post on how to identify BlackBerry Device Software versions.

BlackBerry® 6 to 7.1

1. On the Home screen or in a folder, select “Options”
2. Select “Device” followed by “Advanced System Settings”
3. Select “SIM Card”, press the Menu key and select “Enable Security”
4. Type in the SIM card PIN code you got from your carrier
5. Press the “Enter” key on the keyboard.

BlackBerry® Device Software 4 to 5

1. On the Home screen or in a folder, select “Options”
2. Select “Advanced Option” followed by “SIM Card”
3. Press the Menu key and select “Enable Security”
4. Type in the SIM card PIN code you got from your carrier
5. Press the “Enter” key on the keyboard.

Changing the SIM Card PIN Code

Need to change the PIN code used to unlock your SIM? Complete the following steps:

BlackBerry 6 to 7.1

1. On the Home screen or in a folder, select “Options”
2. Select “Device” followed by “Advanced System Settings”
3. Select “SIM Card”, press the Menu key and select “Change PIN2 Code”
4. Enter the previous SIM Card PIN code followed by entering the new PIN code and pressing the “Enter” key to save the change.

BlackBerry Device Software 4 to 5

1. On the Home screen or in a folder, select “Options”
2. Select “Advanced Option” followed by “SIM Card”
3. Press the Menu key and select “Change PIN2 Code”
4. Enter the previous SIM Card PIN code followed by entering the new PIN code and pressing the “Enter” key to save the change.

Note: To help remember your SIM card PIN code, consider using BlackBerry Password Keeper to store your PIN code. To learn more, check out Heather’s post on how to set up and use BlackBerry Password Keeper.

How to disable SIM Card Security

Decided you no longer want to lock your SIM card? If so, complete the steps below to disable the SIM card PIN code lock.

BlackBerry 6 to 7.1

1. On the Home screen or in a folder, select “Options”
2. Select “Device” followed by “Advanced System Settings”
3. Select “SIM Card”
4. Press the Menu key and select “Disable Security”
5. Enter the SIM card PIN code and press the “Enter” key on your keyboard.

BlackBerry Device Software 4 to 5

1. On the Home screen or in a folder, select “Options”
2. Select “Advanced Option” followed by “SIM Card”
3. Press the Menu key and select “Disable Security”
4. Enter the SIM card PIN code and press the “Enter” key on your keyboard.

Help! I forgot my SIM card PIN code

In the event you forget your SIM card PIN code, you’ll need to contact your wireless service provider for assistance. However, you can still access some of the features on your BlackBerry smartphone if you’ve forgotten your SIM card PIN code– just remove your SIM card from the smartphone and enter your BlackBerry smartphone password to unlock your device after inserting the battery again and restarting your smartphone. For more information, check out knowledge base article KB18647 – “Enter PIN” is displayed when the BlackBerry smartphone is locked.