# WTF?  Text message spam??  Is that what this is?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-text-message-spam-is-that-what-this-is/108639>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 12, 2002, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-text-message-spam-is-that-what-this-is/108639 "2002-05-12T15:46:22Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Ruffian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@Ruffian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruffian)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2002, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-text-message-spam-is-that-what-this-is/108639/1 "2002-05-12T15:46:22Z")

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Yesterday afternoon, I received this text message on my phone:  
“U need to learn how to write.”

Um…okay. Important safety tip, thanks Egon.

No return number, and no one outside my hubby knows my cell phone # has text messaging capabilities. And, no one outside my hubby has received a text message from me. And…_very_ few people have my cell phone #.

W…T…F…??

The only thing I can figure is that it’s the cell phone equivalent to punkass spam–just someone who got a number, doesn’t know who he’s messaging, and leaving some innane comment to be a punkass.

Anyone else have this happen? Anyone know how this happens? (etc)

I figure if it happens again I’ll call my cell phone provider and see what they suggest. Being that it was a benign (to lame), message, it doesn’t bother me…except for the whole curiosity factor. Ideas?

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**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2002, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-text-message-spam-is-that-what-this-is/108639/2 "2002-05-12T15:54:01Z")

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Doesn’t sound like genuine text message junk mail. I regularly get unwanted ads from Carphone Warehouse and Genie (whose unsubscribe feature doesn’t bleeding work), and it’s usually more obvious – either actually selling or leaving a premium rate reply to number to call.

It sounds more like you got a ‘wrong number’ message. That certainly wouldn’t be unheard of.

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**Author:** ![Ruffian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71e660/32.png) [@Ruffian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruffian)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2002, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wtf-text-message-spam-is-that-what-this-is/108639/3 "2002-05-12T16:01:47Z")

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Derrr. Wrong number…makes sense. Can’t believe that never occurred to me; I get wrong number phone calls often enough on that cell phone.

Except, now I want to know how to make my “return number unavailable.” Gonna poke around on the machine and see if that’s an option.