A HOAX e-mail circulating in Hong Kong and around the world is warning mobile phone users their handset will be destroyed by a 'virus' if they answer certain calls.
The message - which claims the alert has been sanctioned by manufacturers Nokia and Motorola - says three million phones in the United States have been rendered useless by the bug.
But officials say the scare is nothing more than a hoax, thought to have started in the Middle East, and is similar to an anonymous message sent to local mobile users last year saying phones were at risk of being 'infected'.
The e-mail says users must not answer a call if the screen shows that the number of the caller is 'unavailable'.
'If you answer the call, your phone will be infected by a virus,' it says.
'Don't answer the call. End the call immediately. This virus will erase all information from both your phone and your SIM card, which will make your phone unable to connect with the telephone network - you will need to buy a new phone.' The message was originally received by an employee of Telstra, Australia's biggest phone network, and he forwarded it to friends.
Telstra says the message is a trick and must be ignored.