What is RICA, and why do we ask for your ID?

If you've bought a SIM in South Africa, you've done RICA, maybe without knowing what it was. When you sign up for LTE, 5G or a SIM data deal with us, we ask for your ID and proof of address. Here's the plain-language why.

The law, briefly

RICA (the Regulation of Interception of Communications Act) requires every SIM card to be registered to an identified person before it's activated. It applies to every network and every reseller. There is no legitimate way to skip it, and you should be suspicious of anyone who offers to.

What you'll need

1. Your SA ID or passport number
2. A photo of the ID document itself
3. Proof of address no older than three months: a bank statement, municipal bill or lease with your name on it

During signup you photograph both documents with your phone. Verification happens on our side within one business day, and your service activates the moment it passes.

What we do with it

This is the part most providers bury. At Needd Connect:

• Your ID number is encrypted in our systems and masked everywhere except the verification screen.
• Documents live in private storage in South Africa, accessible only via expiring links, and every access is logged.
• We keep RICA records for 5 years after your service ends, that retention is the law, not our choice, and we're upfront that deletion requests can't override it.

RICA is mildly annoying and genuinely important. We can't make it optional, so we've made it fast.