Some may contain more than one of these elements, and many are circulated as well meant warnings. Two drug-related legends circulated recently on the internet involve gang members or drug addicts putting a combination of strychnine and LSD on pay phone buttons. The mixture is supposed to be easily absorbed through the skin and fatal. A similar tale involves poisoned deposit envelopes at ATM machines. In both cases, the writer is concerned and providing a warning, there is no real source cited, the moral fabric of society is fraying, and people's fears for their safety are exploited.
Fear is one of the most common elements of the urban legend.
HIV-infected needles being affixed to the underside of gas pump handles. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states on its website that it has had no reports of anyone contracting HIV from a deliberate needle stick or a needle left in a coin return slot. In addition, they state that the risk of transmission from discarded needles is very low. Even people who avoid high risk activities, the stories tell us, are vulnerable, and can fall victim in an out of control society. Occasionally an urban legend appears in print.