Be aware of this

Rumor: Text Messages Can Kill

Saturday March 28, 2009

The Egyptian Gazette reported on Wednesday that a Mallawi man died "vomiting blood" after receiving a mysterious text message from "unknown foreign quarters."

The report appeared to confirm rumors claiming that other victims had similarly experienced "splitting headaches followed by brain hemorrhage that leads to death" after receiving messages prefixed "+" and ending with the numerals "111."

Egypt's Health Ministry dismissed the rumors, stating that they "contradict all scientific facts." Three oil workers were detained for allegedly starting them.

While bizarre, rumors of mobile "death messages" aren't unprecedented. Panic erupted in parts of Pakistan, India, and the Middle East last year after an email hoax claimed that 27 people had succumbed to brain hemorrhages when they answered phone calls emitting a fatal high-frequency signal.