Hoax Report wants you to BREAK THE CHAIN of forwarded e-mail warnings, scares, hoaxes and scams. Check here before passing along anything that urges you to FORWARD THIS TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW! Each issue, we spotlight the currently circulating forwards we've received, and comment on what we've found out about them. If it's a hoax, scam or misinformation, we'll let you know so that you can stop worrying. If you've received an e-mail that you're wondering about, send us a copy at hoax@net4tv.com and we'll check it out.

Puppy Love

PETITION TO STOP THE EXPORT OF ST BERNARD DOGS TO ASIA AS TABLE MEAT

THIS IS SOOOOOO SAD!!!!!!.....

Dear friends,
Could you please consider signing this petition. Sign it, then forward to EVERYONE you know. IF YOU ARE THE 50th SIGNATURE, could you please then forward the petition to [deleted] before forwarding it to your friends.

St Bernard dogs are being exported to Asia (China, Phillipines, etc) as table meat. Some of these dogs are first tortured to increase their adrenaline levels BECAUSE IT IS BELIEVED THAT THIS MAKES THE MEAT TASTE SWEETER, then skinned alive. These animals are being killed because their meat is considered to be an aphrodisiac. This is an absolutely abhorrent practice and WILL STOP NOW! PLEASE, sign this Petition which, will be forwarded to the United Nations asking that they intervene. New Zealand was successful in stopping the experimentation on the Great Apes - we can all, as a world nation, do the same for our pets. Thank you.

PETITION TO STOP THE EXPORT OF ST BERNARD DOGS TO ASIA AS TABLE MEAT

I/We the undersigned ask that the United Nations intervene on behalf of the people of the world to stop this abhorrent treatment of all dogs and to stop countries exporting/importing dogs for the purpose of either breeding for food or using for food. St Bernard dogs are popular for this practice as the puppies grow to a large size quickly.

This one is a "maybe, but you aren't helping by forwarding." E-mail petitions are worse than useless, even for a good cause, since the tracking and verifying of signatures is well-nigh impossible. Whether or not this appalling e-mail is true, "signing" and forwarding it on to your friends isn't going to help. If previous experience serves in this case, the e-mail address [deleted] to send the copies of the petition will likely be shut down due to overload in short order.

Oh, Rats! Not Again!

Subject: Be careful of Rats' droppings.

A stock clerk was sent to clean up a storeroom at their Maui location. Then he got back, he was complaining that the storeroom was really filthy, and that he had noticed dried mouse or rat droppings in some areas.

A couple of days later, he started feeling like he was coming down with stomach flu, achy joints, headache, and he started throwing up. He went to bed and never really got up. Within two days he was so ill and weak. His blood sugar count was down to 66 and his face and eyeballs were yellow. He was rushed to the emergency at Pali Momi, where they said he was suffering from massive organ failure!

The doctor, in ER, transferred him to St. Francis Hospital and notifies all his relatives as he didn't had long to live. In ICU of St. Francis Hospital, a team of doctors were trying desperately to stabilize him. They said that even if by some miracle he pulled through, he would need a new liver, kidneys, pancreas and bladder. He died shortly before midnight.

None of us would have ever made the connection between his job and his death, but the doctors specifically asked if he had been in a warehouse or exposed to dried rat or mouse droppings at any time.

They said there is a virus (much like Hanta virus) that lives in dried rat and mouse droppings. Once dried, these droppings are like dust, and can easily be inhaled or ingested if a person is not careful to wash their hands and face thoroughly, or wear protective gear. An autopsy is being conducted to verify the doctors' suspicions and tissue samples have been sent to the CDC in Atlanta.

Please be extremely careful to always rinse off the tops of any canned sodas or foods, and wipe off pasta packaging, cereal boxes, etc. Almost everything you buy in a supermarket was stored in a warehouse at one time or another, and stores themselves often have rodents. I worked in grocery wholesaling long enough to know that even the cleanest store has mice or rats.

Whenever you buy any canned soft drink, please make sure that you wash the top with running water and soap, or if not available, drink with a straw. A family friend's friend died after drinking can of soda! Apparently, she did not clean the top before drinking from the can. The top was encrusted with dried rat's urine, which is toxic and obviously lethal!!!! canned drinks and other foodstuffs are stored in warehouses and containers that are usually infested with rodents and then get transported to the retail outlets without being properly cleaned.

Please forward this message to the people you care about...

This one first surfaced in 1999, but seems to be making a comeback judging from our Inbox. It's a hoax. The State of Hawaii Department of Health investigated this e-mail and stated that it wasn't true, that no cases of hanta virus have been reported in Hawaii. See About.com-Lethal Rat Droppings / Urine for more details. Delete.

Dialing for (Your) Dollars?

Subj: FW: DON'T EVER DIAL AREA CODE 809

This major scam is being distributed all over the US. This is pretty scary-especially given the way they try to get you to call. Be sure you read this & pass it on to all your friends and family so they don't get scammed!

Don't respond to Emails, phone calls, or web pages which tell you to call an "809" Phone Number. This is a very important issue of Scam Busters because it alerts you to a scam that is spreading *extremely* quickly can easily cost you $24,100 or more, and is difficult to avoid unless you are aware of it.

We'd like to thank Verizon for bringing this scam to our attention. This scam has also been identified by the National Fraud Information Center and is costing victims a lot of money. There are lots of different rmutations of this scam, but HERE'S HOW IT WORKS:
You will receive a message on your answering machine or your pager, which asks you to call a number beginning with area code 809. The reason you're asked to call varies. It can be to receive information about a family member who has been ill, to tell you someone has been arrested, died, to let you know you have won a wonderful prize, etc. In each case, you are told to call the 809 number right away.

Since there are so many new area codes these days, people knowingly return these calls. If you call from the US, you will apparently be charged $2425 per-minute. Or, you'll get a long recorded message. The point is, they will try to keep you on the phone as long as possible to increase the harges. This can add up to real money and you will probably have to pay it.

WHY IT WORKS: The 809 area code is located in the British Virgin Islands (The Bahamas). The 809 area code can be used as a pay-per-call" number, similar to 900 numbers in the US. Since 809 is not in the US, it is not covered by U.S. regulations of 900 numbers, which require that you be notified and warned of charges and rates involved when you call a "pay-per-call" number. There is also no requirement that the company provide a time period during which you may terminate the call without being charged. Further, whereas many U.S. phones have 900 number blocking to avoid these kinds of charges, 900 number blocking will not prevent calls to the 809 area code.

We recommend that no matter how you get the message, if you are asked to call a number with an 809 area code that you don't recognize and/or investigate further and just disregard the message. Be wary of email or calls asking you to call an 809 area code number. It's important to prevent becoming a victim of this scam, since trying to fight the charges afterwards can become A real nightmare. That's because you did actually make the call. If you complain, both your local phone company and your long distance carrier will not want to get involved and will most likely tell you that they are simply providing the billing for the foreign company. You'll end up dealing with a foreign company that argues they have done nothing wrong.

Please forward this entire message to your friends, family and colleagues to help them become aware of this scam.

This one, making the rounds again, is a mixture of truth and exaggeration. The original warning from Scambusters, a very reputable organization, has been picked up as a multi-forwarded e-mail and some erroneous material has been added. See 809 Scam for a full explanation. This is a complicated matter, and forwarding this e-mail is just going to confuse your family and friends further. Don't do it. Break the chain and point them toward Scambusters for more info.

If you do these things, I promise you that your friends will be much happier than if you forwarded them a hundred dire warnings of catastrophe. And, you won't hurt our feelings, either. We'd love to be able to retire this column permanently.