The "Terrorists, Malls, and Halloween" Email Hoax

Last significant update: 23 October 2001

This information can be freely reproduced in any medium, as long as the information is unmodified.

There are several variants of this hoax. It is particularly galling to think that these hoaxes are being fabricated not by the terrorists, but in at least one case by U.S. citizens. I suggest that if this is not treasonous, it sure as hell is about as unpatriotic as one can get.

Shun them.

This hoax concerns a letter supposedly written on 10 September, 2001 by an Afghan in the U.S. to his girlfriend. In it he allegedly tells her that he must leave but cannot explain why; that she must not to fly on planes the next day, and to stay out of malls on Halloween. Supposedly this letter was given to the FBI after the attacks on the 11th of September.

I will not succor the pathetic scumbag creep who started this hoax by supplying the actual text here; let me say that whoever wrote this is nearly as heinous as those about whom he writes.

Why is it a hoax? Well, first of all, Afghanis are not Arabs (and, of course, almost all Afghanis and Arabs are not terrorists). Next, the report is second-hand at best. Third, this argument is a logical fallacy (Just because event A actually occurred, and since this email mentions both event A and a future event B, it does not logically follow that event B must happen).

Oh, by the way: The FBI says they've never received such a letter. In fact, as of 15 October 2001, they've had a press release (leaving our site) to this effect (kudos to them for putting it on the web!)

But enough, already. Hoaxters prey on two things: greed, and Good Samaritanism. Guess which one this is. [I wonder if the newly proposed cyperterrorism rules will, if passed into law, apply to hoaxters. Hope so.]

For an excellent analysis of this, see the Urban Legends Reference Mall-o-Ween page (leaving our site). Wish I'd said it myself.

Please do not forward this -- or any other hoax -- to all your friends.

Instead, you should reply to the sender -- and as far back up the email chain as you have energy -- informing the originators that this is a hoax. For this particular hoax, I suggest that you provide a pointer to this URL (http://www.umich.edu/~virus-busters/hoaxes/mall.html)
For virus or hoax info, please see our main page (http://www.umich.edu/~virus-busters/) or go to another reputable site, like The Urban Legends Reference Pages (leaving our site).

   -BPB