A method and mobile communication system for managing authentication keys, the system having at least one authentication center, base stations and mobile stations to which subscriber identity modules may be coupled and which communicate with the base stations. The authentication keys are managed by: generating authentication keys and identifiers corresponding thereto, each of which identifiers is independent of a mobile subscriber identity, which allow authentication keys corresponding to the identifiers to be found in the authentication center, storing the authentication keys in the authentication center so that the authentication keys may be found in the authentication center on the basis of the identifiers, and storing the authentication keys and the identifiers corresponding to the authentication keys to the subscriber identity modules.