One of the many benefits of reading my newsletter regularly: The range of money-saving tips I share with you from time to time. That's why you'll be interested in this Snopes.com story about side-stepping high mobile phone bills in the event your mobile is stolen or lost.

It's easy to detect and cut off fraudulent activity after a phone is lost by reporting it to your service provider. However, what about all the damage done (in lost dollars) before you report the phone to your mobile carrier?

Many phone manufacturers and service providers include a fail safe -- a 15-digit International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) code you can often find by keying in a specific code -- that you can report to them that prevents your phone from being used to make calls or to open a new account. The code to input is generally: * # 0 6 #

Be aware, however, of two things:

• Losing a cellular phone or having it stolen doesn't require you to sign a new service agreement.
• Consider using a headset like the one sold in my Web store to protect your body from the harmful electromagnetic fields a mobile phone emits.