A new email hoax has landed on Australian screens offering email users a free Sony portable gaming machine via a chain-mail message, which contains fake contact details and potentially dangerous links.

The hoax claims Sony is giving away its new portable gaming machine, the PlayStation Portable (PSP), as part of a word-of-mouth marketing campaign, and asks the reader to forward the email to 20 email contacts in order to claim the free goods.

Sony is warning people through its call centre not to follow any of the instructions on the email or to forward it to any others. It said it had received dozens of inquiries relating to the hoax and was taking the unusual step of issuing a warning on its website.

Read more about this spam attempt at http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/scammers-play-games-with-sony/2005/10/26/1130291435243.html.