Cell Phone Safety?

[Lotech]

I received a message via email, that all cell phone #s are going to be available to telemarketers and when you get a call from them, you are responsible for the time charges. This is all supposed to start this month or next. Does anyone here know about this threat, or has anyone gotten word that it might be true? I just don't trust anyone anymore.

[rainbowchaser]

I thought I had seen this before. The link below shows that it is not true.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/cell411.asp

[Byron Zuehlsdorff]

Once you have put it on the national registery, you don't have to do it again. Not a bad idea to do it if you haven't done it yet, But you don't have to do it AGAIN.

[Lotech]

Thanks. For some reason I couldn't remember the name "snopes." Still not a bad idea to put your # on the national registry.

[Jerry]

I receive the same email about once per year with the same warning from a fellow FAOLer. I reply with the same "it ain't true".

I do however receive SPAM text messages occasionally. One, just the other day told me a credit card, the name of which I'd never heard of needed the information updated and a phone number to call. It is obviously a scam because the phone is operated with a Google Voice number and I have never given its actual number to any one.

[fishbum]

I have all the people I want to hear from and will take calls from programed into my cell phone. With caller, ID if a name comes up I answer, otherwise I let it ring. The caller can leave me a message. I will decide if it is important enough to return the call. I don't take any test messages from anybody.

fishbum

[CaseyP]

fishbum,
i used to have the same policy. then we started traveling more, leaving our daughter in charge of the house and cats. lots of places have iffy cell phone coverage and playing tag with her or having calls drop in the middle got very old.

then she taught me to text. now she checks in each day by text, and we get the messages when we can. then we can send her messages that she answers when she can. texting can also happen in real time when the connection is too weak to support a coherent conversation.

like caller ID, the message notification tells me who has sent the message, so if i don't know them i don't open it. my cheap plan ($29/mo) gives me hundreds of texts a month.

just thought i'd pass on one family's experience in case it's useful to you.

P.S. i've also learned to take a snapshot and send it to her on my phone--like from in front of Mt. Rushmore...too clever!
PPS thanks FAOL for the real dope on that phone list thingy!

[Bass_Bug]

I thought I had seen this before. The link below shows that it is not true.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/cell411.asp

THANKS rainbowchaser for the Snopes reminder!!!!!!. Snopes was my first thought when I read the first post in this thread. I wish Snopes would advertise nationally on TV and Radio to get the word out about how much CRAP "warnings" is going around out there clogging up the Internet. A very dear (and somewhat gullible) friend of mine emails me these "OMG it's the end of this or that" emails almost weekly. For the new ones I've never seen I go straight to Snopes and EVERY one has always been on there, and FALSE too I might add. Then I have to email her back with a friendly reminder that she should look these up on Snopes before sending to everyone in her address book.

The bad part is that more and more people getting on facebook is just making it worse, posting these urban legends on their status or whatever you call it. Which is one of several reason I don't do facebook.

BTW I dont answer my cell if I dont know the number or else it's coming form my local prefix. Occasionally a wrong number, but never any spam calls get answered.

[Betty Hiner]

Casey,
"P.S. i've also learned to take a snapshot and send it to her on my phone--like from in front of Mt. Rushmore...too clever!" Do you realize how lose you were to the land of no trouts???!!!! I just absolutely started hyperventilating when I saw that post!!!

[CaseyP]

the land of no trouts?

gee, we never saw a fish while we were there...not one. were we missing something? nah...but we're going back (just in case.)