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But if you have the phone can't you just put the sim in another phone and read texts?

In countries outside the US, SIM cards generally require an unlock code when inserted into a new device.

I've had SIM cards in 10+ countries outside North America. None of them came set to require a PIN on startup. I had to enable it.

FWIW, I'm in the UK and this is the first I've heard of this.