Rumours Spread That People are Dying After Answering Their Mobile Phone

The Indian cit­y of Nagpur has been rife with rumours of so-called "deadly" phone calls that can kill the recipients. The rumours which had been simmering quietly gained a boost after the police were flooded with calls about claims that a two people had died after answering their mobile phones.

One of the claimed deaths was of a nine-year-old girl and another of a teenager's death due to bleeding from ears after receiving a phone call.

Police commissioner Ankush Dhanvijay told the Times of India that the police were looking into the complaints, and there was no need to panic.

There have been hoaxes about deadly phone calls or text messages spread over the past few years in various parts of the world.

In 2007 and 2008, phone users in Angola, Pakistan and Afghanistan were hit by rumours that answering a mobile phone could kill the user. The warnings, often spread by SMS, but also by word of mouth claimed that "as soon as you answer your phone blood comes out of your mouth, nose and ears and you die"

Also in 2008, SMS messages were circulated in Malaysia telling users to switch off their phone before 11pm on Saturday. The messages warned that a "radiation wave" was to be emitted from the mobile phone towers and that it could be harmful to people if their phone was still switched on.

Obviously, it is impossible for a phone to kill someone who answers a call, yet these rumours still crop up every few years.