Facebook has reportedly hired over half a dozen former Apple software and hardware engineers to build a phone.

It's not the first time that Facebook has tried to get into the phone business, the New York Times reported, being the company's third attempt to do so.

Facebook did not have much to say about the project: "We're working across the entire mobile industry; with operators, hardware manufacturers, OS providers, and application developers."

Zuckerberg fears that if a device isn't created soon, then "Facebook will simply become an app on other mobile platforms," a Facebook employee was quoted as saying.

The report comes as Facebook filed its initial public offering and released a Facebook Camera application.