I believe the poster above was talking about postpaid which I believe includes a soft pull on your credit. It is $70 a month but you still pay it at the end of the month (I assume your monthly bill could go higher if you call premium services or dial international numbers).

No, I got a prepaid plan. They wanted my name, date of birth, a PIN, and $87. I used a credit card.

Thank you for the reply. Very interesting. Did they verify your date of birth (such as driving license)? Or just took your word for it?

They just took my word for it.

I routinely buy T-Mobile SIMs (for mobile testing, nothing nefarious) with cash without giving a name, or by giving them a not-real name. It sometimes require some real minor social engineering.