Who does not love a good prank or a dare?! They are fun, hilarious, and make for good memories. With the advent of the internet, posting pranks or challenges online has become unbelievably easy. With a click of a button or two, you can post a video of a challenge online for your followers to see and participate in. Young internet users take videos of pranks and post them online for likes and to increase the number of followers.
While playing a harmless prank is all in good fun, not all videos you see online are made with good intentions. The internet is a vortex where you can find some of the darkest and most vile things imaginable. This includes videos of dangerous pranks and evil challenges that have been uploaded simply to create terror and get likes. They hide in plain sight under clickbait titles that lure in unsuspecting victims, most of who happen to be children.
The Dark Side of the Web
While the internet was created to make our lives easier, some people have managed to use it as means to spread negativity. Various pranks and challenges are uploaded online every day with the intention to create shock value. They are uploaded under tempting headlines that are sure to catch someone’s attention. To prevent from internet danger, parent should know how to protect kids from the world of internet by monitoring several things such as Social Media Tracking, internet usage track etc.
One of the biggest dangers of these challenges is that they prey on the innocence and imagination of children. Kids are often the most common victims of online pranks. Adults are more wary and cautious about what goes on in the virtual world, but children are inexperienced and unfamiliar with the risks. There have been online challenges like the Ice Bucket Challenge which were introduced to help raise awareness of a health condition known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). On the other hand, there are many that were designed to mock, humiliate, and possibly harm people. Here is a list of some of the most popular viral internet challenges or pranks.
1. Momo Challenge
The Momo challenge starts by asking an individual to contact an unknown number. “Momo,” the anonymous person behind this number, then sends instructions on how to perform odd activities that could have possibly dangerous outcomes. Once a challenge is completed, Momo will send instructions for the next one, with each challenge becoming more dangerous than the previous. It has been reported that some children have committed suicide while trying to complete Momo’s challenges. Children are coerced into participating through aggressive and threatening messages. Momo has been depicted as a gruesome being with large bulging eyes and a scary smile.
2. Tide Pod Challenge
This viral trend involved children eating capsules or pods containing liquid detergent. The Tide Pod challenge became immensely popular among teenagers who would take videos of themselves consuming laundry detergent. It was one of the most dangerous challenges on the internet because eating laundry pods meant that kids were ingesting detergent, bleach, softener, and various other chemicals. It can cause nausea, vomiting, seizures, pulmonary edema, respiratory arrest, heart issues, and death.
3. Blue Whale Challenge
Also known as the Suicide Challenge, the Blue Whale Challenge involves 50 tasks that have to be completed over a period of 50 days. The initial tasks are pretty harmless like watching a scary movie or waking up in the middle of the night. But as the game progressed, tasks became more dangerous, like cutting yourself or standing on the edge of a building’s ledge. The final task was to commit suicide. Several deaths have been reported to be tied with this online challenge.
4. The Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge
This challenge required a participant to place a shot glass around their mouth and suck the air in so the glass stays in place. The causes their lips to become swollen and look similar to fashion celebrity Kylie Jenner’s lips, hence the name. When done for a short period of time, it can have a temporary effect. Longer use can result in permanent damage.
5. Eraser Challenge
In this challenge, kids have been seen rubbing an eraser into their skin for a specific period of time while reciting phrases or the alphabet. The rubbing causes their skin to become raw and inflamed, leading to cuts and abrasions. Besides scarring and burning their skin, children have contracted skin infections from performing this challenge.
6. Duct Tape Challenge
This challenge has been around for several years. It involves wrapping a participant with duct tape and recording them as they try to escape. They are given a specific amount of time to break free. While breaking through duct tape is not dangerousin itself, kids have seriously hurt themselves while participating in this challenge.
7. Salt and Ice Challenge
In this challenge, the participant pours some salt on their palm and places an ice cube on top. This causes a burning sensation. They then close their fist and see how long they can hold on to the salt and ice. This dangerous challenge has caused kids to give themselves serious burns on their bodies.
Safeguard your kids from online pranks & viral challenges
Now that you know what kind of evils lurk around on the internet, it is your job to make sure your kids do not fall victim to them. Install a parental monitoring application like TiSPY on your kids’ phones so you can keep an eye on their online activity. TiSPY helps you monitor all kinds of activity on your children’s smartphones, from conversations to downloads. Follow them on social media so you can keep a check on their posts and activities. Being aware of what your child does online is the first step in protecting them. Here is the list of activities parents can track on kids smartphone.
- Read text messages / Watch MMS
- Read & monitor messages of social media apps
- Track kids live location
- Monitor activities on WhatsApp, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram etc.
- View Call Log data
- View & Monitor phone gallery
- Monitor internet usage
- Check & track installed apps
- Monitor live surroundings (Audio / video)
So, save your kids from such viral online pranks & challenges by installing TiSPY parental monitoring software straight away.
Smart measures to ensure safe device usage by your children.
