This might be spam but someone forwarded me this email:


JUST A REMINDER!

Four days from today, cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and you will start to receive sale calls. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS! These telemarketers will eat up your free minutes and end up costing you money in the long run. To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone:

(888)382-1222.

It is the National DO NOT CALL List. It will only take a minute of your time. It blocks your number for five years.

PASS THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS


Real or hoax?

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_____________________________________

I reject your reality and substitute my own!

[www.snopes.com]


Claim: An upcoming directory will soon make all cell phone numbers available to telemarketers.

Status: Multiple:
A consortium of wireless providers is planning to create a 411 (directory assistance) service for cell phone numbers: True.


You must register your cell phone with the national "Do Not Call" directory to prevent your number from being provided to telemarketers: False.
Examples:

[Collected on the Internet, 2005]

DON'T FORGET TO DO THIS....
Telemarketing on cell phone starts in September.

JUST A REMINDER... 31 days from today, cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and you will start to receive sales calls. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS...

To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone: 888-382-1222. It is the national DO NOT CALL list. It will only take a minute of your time. It blocks your number for five (5) years.

PASS THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Collected on the Internet, 2004]

A directory of cell phone numbers will soon be published for all consumers to have access to. This will open the doors for solicitors to call you on your cell phones, using up the precious minutes that we pay lots of money for. The Federal Trade Commission has set up a "do not call" list. It is called a cell phone registry. To be included on the "do not call" list, you must call from the number you wish to register.

The number is 1-888-382-1222 or you can go to their website at www.donotcall.gov.

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- Jack D.




New tasteless sig coming soon!

Newton a trusted friend sent this to me a while ago. It seems to be the same number. I would go for the web site registration since it is the .gov site.

"TO PREVENT THIS, CALL THE FOLLOWING NUMBER FROM YOUR CELL PHONE: 888-382-1222. IT IS THE NATIONAL DO NOT CALL LIST. IT WILL ONLY TAKE A MINUTE OF YOUR TIME. IT BLOCKS YOUR NUMBER FOR FIVE YEARS.

PASS THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS. YOU NEED TO CALL FROM THE NUMBER YOU WANT TO REGISTER. YOU CAN ALSO GO ONLINE AT [www.donotcall.gov] "

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Roswell, GA (Atlanta suburb)

I could be mistaken, but I believe anyone can register a .gov domain name, without any varification of government organization status.

Thanks.

I never heard of this for cell phones. . .so wasn't sure.

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_____________________________________

I reject your reality and substitute my own!

jimbrady Wrote:
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> I could be mistaken, but I believe anyone can
> register a .gov domain name, without any
> varification of government organization status.

You are mistaken.

.gov
.mil
.edu

are all reserved and not "anyone" can register them.

>are all reserved and not "anyone" can register them.

But who stops you?

The domain registrars' requirements of proving your status as a .gov, .mil, .edu is what stops you. They aren't even listed on registrar websites as TLD's (Top Level Domains) that you can register.

I guess I'll have to settle for .org

For .gov:

You have to apply, via letter, to the GSA ( [www.gsa.gov] ).

For .edu:

You have to apply to EDUCAUSE. Only postsecondary institutions that are institutionally accredited by an agency on the U.S. Department of Education's list of Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agencies may obtain an Internet name in the .edu domain.

[www.educause.edu]

For .mil:

You have to apply via the DoD. These are the guys with the guns and the bombs.

NewtonMP2100 Wrote:
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> Real or hoax?
>
I did it a while ago on the 3 cell phones in our family. If is was a hoax, I would assume we'd be covered up with phone calls by now and that hasn't happened.

I vote "real."

But you can be text messaged and that will really eat up your minutes. This loop hole courtesy of the cell companies' lobbyists.