# Anonymous virtual debit cards **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 14, 2012, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710 "2012-10-14T18:56:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Qwertol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Qwertol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwertol)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/1 "2012-10-14T18:56:17Z")
Do anonymous (no asking for ID), prepaid virtual debit cards exist? Or is it pretty much illegal everywhere? ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/2 "2012-10-14T19:59:08Z")
Wouldn’t something like a Visa gift card be pretty much the same thing? They are legal. ---
**Author:** ![Qwertol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Qwertol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwertol)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/3 "2012-10-14T20:41:31Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Wouldn’t something like a Visa gift card be pretty much the same thing? They are legal. Aren’t you asked for ID when buying one? ---
**Author:** ![Rubixcube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Rubixcube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubixcube)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/4 "2012-10-14T21:20:43Z")
Sounds like you’re looking for Bitcoins. They’ve become quite famous for their use in buying less-than-legal items and services. But they aren’t really debit cards, and depending on what you intend to purchase you may have some difficulty using them. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/5 "2012-10-14T23:50:09Z")
Or, you know…cash? ---
**Author:** ![goldmund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a4c791/32.png) [@goldmund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goldmund)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/6 "2012-10-15T01:47:59Z")
> [@Qwertol](#): > > Aren’t you asked for ID when buying one? I’ve never been asked for ID when buying one, no. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/7 "2012-10-15T17:09:15Z")
> [@goldmund](#): > > I’ve never been asked for ID when buying one, no. But when I tried to use one online, I had to give my name and address to get that 4 digit code on the back, and to have a name to put on the card where you have to fill that out. Yeah, I can lie, but I don’t consider that anonymous. And good luck to you people recomending sending cash online. You did note he said that it has to be virtual, right? ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/8 "2012-10-16T04:11:12Z")
When I first bought an iPad, I had to set up a US app store account which included a need for a US credit card. (It kept telling me the Canadian store was not set up yet). I bought a local Visa gift card at the drug store (cash no questions asked) then signed up and lied, giving it a fictitious address in the USA. (Quick - what’s a valid US city and postal code? Can you name a TV show for a bonus point?) Apparently the “address confirmation” for Visa prepaid gift cards would (a few years ago at least) validate anything you put in. I suppose I could have used any name I wanted too. The only downside is that it is strictly a one-time card. You cannot add money to it. (Just buy another one…) When Apple finally realized there were customers north of 49, I opened a legit account in the Canadian store. The only annoying thing is switching between two accounts when apps have to be updated nowadays. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/9 "2012-10-16T14:02:16Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I had to give my name and address to get that 4 digit code on the back, and to have a name to put on the card where you have to fill that out. Yeah, I can lie, but I don’t consider that anonymous.? well, yes, you CAN lie. And it’s okay! I recently used a prepaid Visa card, and think I figured out how they work. It seems to me that the personal info was irrelevant and gets ignored…So yes, I lied about mine. The form at most web sites is pretty standard–you have to give all your personal info–name, addreess, the 4digit code on the card, etc, then you type in the card number, and only after all that typing, the web site starts using your card–whether it’s your real card, or an anonymous prepaid card. There’s an error-checking routine coded in the web site that insists you fill in all the right lines of data, and won’t let you proceed if you leave out , say, your address. I assume that’s because for somebody using his real card, the web site wants to verify that the card number matches the personal info. But it seems to me that for pre-paid cards, as soon as the web site reads your card number and realizes that there the cash is already in place, (and there is no danger that the bill won’t get paid next month), then there’s no reason to verify the personal info. So the site just ignores everything you typed in, and the transaction goes smoothly. So you are still completely anonymous. ---
**Author:** ![xnylder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/bbce88/32.png) [@xnylder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xnylder)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/10 "2012-10-17T13:50:28Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > When I first bought an iPad, I had to set up a US app store account which included a need for a US credit card. (It kept telling me the Canadian store was not set up yet). I bought a local Visa gift card at the drug store (cash no questions asked) then signed up and lied, giving it a fictitious address in the USA. (Quick - what’s a valid US city and postal code? Can you name a TV show for a bonus point?) Apparently the “address confirmation” for Visa prepaid gift cards would (a few years ago at least) validate anything you put in. I suppose I could have used any name I wanted too. > > The only downside is that it is strictly a one-time card. You cannot add money to it. (Just buy another one…) > > When Apple finally realized there were customers north of 49, I opened a legit account in the Canadian store. The only annoying thing is switching between two accounts when apps have to be updated nowadays. What you’re describing reminds me of one way to fulfill the OP’s request: Gift cards sold by third-party retailers. I’ve created an account on iTunes Japan and used Japanese iTunes gift cards I bought from an online store to pay for music I can’t get through the Canadian store. As far as Apple Japan knows, I’m working in a government office in Aichi (random address I found by Googling). The gift cards were legit, sold through an authorized reseller. The only gray area in the transaction is fudging the customer address for the final retailer (the reseller has my actual details, because unlike iTunes Japan they are set up to take international credit cards). ---
**Author:** ![Qwertol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Qwertol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwertol)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/11 "2012-10-17T16:02:50Z")
So I guess there are anonymous cards in the world but not in my country. I mean you can buy a card without ID but you still have to activate it on bank’s site and give your personal data. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/12 "2012-10-17T20:54:20Z")
> [@Qwertol](#): > > So I guess there are anonymous cards in the world but not in my country. I mean you can buy a card without ID but you still have to activate it on bank’s site and give your personal data. Do you have to give _real_ personal data however? As others have noted, they’ve set things up with bogus addresses. If you wind up doing that, of course, make sure you make a note of it; some websites won’t sell to you if your billing address doesn’t match what the card servicer has on file. I don’t know whether they do the same enforcement with the prepaid cards. ---
**Author:** ![Qwertol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Qwertol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwertol)\ **Post date:** [October 17, 2012, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anonymous-virtual-debit-cards/637710/13 "2012-10-17T21:37:21Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > Do you have to give _real_ personal data however? As others have noted, they’ve set things up with bogus addresses. > > If you wind up doing that, of course, make sure you make a note of it; some websites won’t sell to you if your billing address doesn’t match what the card servicer has on file. I don’t know whether they do the same enforcement with the prepaid cards. You also have to give your PESEL, which in my country is a number uniquely (at least in theory) identifying a person, so if bank wanted to it could verify the data and lock the card if it found they are fake.