cellphone manufacturer Nokia warned on Monday
of hoax e-mails and SMS"s sent in the company"s
name.


"Nokia do not participate in any lottery activities
and the messages constitute a scam," said Nokia"s
senior account manager Caryl Ramsden. The company warned of sophisticated hoaxes
"distributed by a syndicate of fraudsters"
requesting an administration fee to collect
winnings. Ramsden said that the fraudsters use software
enabling them to see which handset is being used
by a target. They then personalise the hoax SMS to
garner a response." She said that this hoax is an international scam and
is not unique to Nokia. Consumers should not forward or respond to the
messages in any form, Ramsden said