An e-mail message making national rounds has fueled fears among cell phone customers that their wireless minutes soon could be chewed up by unwanted telemarketing calls.

The e-mail warns recipients that a new national directory of wireless telephone numbers will be published and available to telemarketing companies, which will "call and use up your minutes."

The e-mail looks legitimate, Dallas television station KXAS reported. But according to a Cingular Wireless representative, so do most urban legends.

"It has been going around, and we have consistently tried to correct the record," Frank Merriman said. "This is the latest version of that."

Merriman acknowledged that a cell phone directory is being compiled. The list, however, would be used for 411, or directory assistance, calls and not published. The list also would include only cell phone numbers of individuals or businesses that choose to be listed.

"However, individuals participating in that directory have to specifically request to be included," Merriman said. "If you don't want to participate in the directory, you don't have to do a thing."

Telemarketers also are prohibited by law from using autodialers, computer systems used to generate land-line telephone numbers, to call wireless phones, according to Consumers Union. The organization also reported that telemarketers need the permission of a wireless customer to call that individual.

The circulating e-mail contains some useful advice. The message urges recipients to list their cell phone numbers with the National Do-Not Call list. The number then would be off limits to telemarketers.

To make sure your telephone number is on the do-not-call list, call (888) 382-1222 or go to DoNotCall.gov