Many users of Etisalat's Wasel card across Dubai and Sharjah yesterday believed that sending a blank SMS to 444444 topped up their credit by Dh10, Dh15, Dh20 or Dh30.

A number of individuals who claimed to have “earned” upto Dh200 or more by sending SMS to the number told Khaleej Times that word had gone around town, especially among the tech-savvy youngsters well versed with the use of mobile phones, that credit could be earned on a Wasel card by sending SMS to the given number after 3.30 am on Saturday (December 4) only.

“No one knows who started spreading this message, but I heard it from my friends in Karama. And while I did not believe it, I thought there was no harm in trying; at worst I would end up losing Dh10 if it was one of those scams. After the first SMS my credit went up by Dh20, and after several attempts I made some 240. There are others I know of who claim they collected a credit of Dh1,000,” said Jehan (name changed on request), a resident of Dubai.

Others who tried the “trick” said that they believe it could be a technical fault and eventually would be rectified, and people who use up the credit might find themselves in trouble as they would have to pay it back in full. “The free credit is not going anywhere, people who are happy doing this now will have to pay it back,” said Shaji, also a Dubai resident, whose friends tried their luck in the scam.

Khaleej Times contacted Etisalat on the issue, but no official response was available.