MOMO NO-NO
Momo Challenge in ‘Peppa Pig and Fortnite videos’ as YouTube and Instagram fail to remove ‘dangerous’ clips despite self-harm warnings
HEADTEACHERS and parents have warned sick web suicide game Momo is being spliced into seemingly innocent YouTube videos of Peppa Pig and Fortnite.
Kids have reportedly been left terrified after the scary Momo girl - which has been linked to two children's deaths - emerged on their screens.
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Meanwhile, YouTube and Instagram has failed to take down 'Momo Challenge' videos despite a warning by police in Northern Ireland.
Momo Challenge is a 'suicide challenge' game on social media in which players are threatened to follow 'orders' from the scary-looking avatar.
Northolt Community Special School in Hull, East Yorks, issued a warning to parents today after pupils were reportedly targeted on YouTube.
The school said: "We are aware that some nasty challenges (Momo challenge) are hacking into children's programmes.
"Challenges appear midway through Kids YouTube, Fortnight, Peppa pig to avoid detection by adults.
"Please be vigilant with your child using IT, images are very disturbing.";
Is the Momo Challenge a hoax?
THE Momo Challenge is believed to have originated in South America.
The creepy face of a Japanese sculpture was hijacked and spread on WhatsApp - reportedly with instructions enticing children to perform a series of dangerous tasks including self-harm and suicide.
In recent days police and schools have issued warnings about the challenge arriving in the UK and a number of parents have said their children have been exposed to it.
Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom even told MPs the Government is "extremely concerned" about it.
But confusingly UK charities and internet experts have suggested the challenge is a hoax.
The Samaritans and the NSPCC said there is no confirmed evidence anyone has come to physical harm.
And YouTube claimed: "We have found no evidence of videos showing or promoting the Momo challenge on YouTube."
While it appears the challenge itself may not have reached Britain, sick copycats have been traumatising children by splicing a ghoulish video of a bug-eyed girl into Peppa Pig cartoons and Fortnite gameplay footage.
PARENTS SHARE MOMO HORROR STORIES
Parents have previously told The Sun Online how the character, which was originally created by a Japanese artist with no links to the game, has appeared on their child's YouTube videos.
One mum, from Swindon, said her six-year-old son was watching a gaming channel when the creature popped up and warned "I'm going to kill you".
She said: "The video paused half way through - but he didn’t press pause.
"Then the Momo face popped up and was making weird noises, he couldn’t hear everything it said but it was saying ‘I’m going to kill you’ and he thinks it said ‘I will hurt your friends’.
SAFETY NET: How to keep your child safe online
The Internet can be an amazing tool to help children learn and play.
But with the digital world changing all the time, how can you make sure your child is safe?
Set up parental controls
- Parental controls can be used to block upsetting or harmful content, control in-app purchases or manage how long your child spends online
- The filters can help control what time of day your child can go online, and to stop them from downloading apps they are too young for
Talk to your children
- Have regular conversations about what your child is doing online
- Explore sites and apps together
- Talk about what personal information they should share online
- Create a family agreement about what behaviour is appropriate when they are online
Do your research
- Check through websites your child will use through the
- Change privacy settings and turning off location sharing
If you need help now, you can phone experts on the free NSPCC & O2 helpline 0808 800 5002
"He turned it off straight away and ran downstairs. He was absolutely terrified.
"He wouldn’t leave my side at all after it happened. He wouldn’t stay in a room alone and he had to sleep with me in my bed last night.
"He asked for our German shepherd to sleep on my bed also so she could chase away Momo if she got into my room."
POLICE MONITORING CHILLING THREAT
Police Service of Northern Ireland has said it is liaising with other UK forces over the 'disturbing game'.
Detective Sergeant Elaine McCormill said: "This extremely disturbing challenge conceals itself within other harmless looking games or videos played by children and when downloaded, it asks the user to communicate with 'Momo' via popular messaging applications such as WhatsApp.
"It is at this point that children are threatened that they will be cursed or their family will be hurt if they do not self-harm."
But despite the warning scores of videos featuring the Momo Challenge - some featuring images of self-harm - remain live on YouTube and Instagram.
Charity Kidscape has said that social media companies are "not doing enough" to protect children from harmful or distressing content such as Momo.
A YouTube spokesman said: "YouTube’s Community Guidelines prohibit content that's intended to encourage dangerous activities that have an inherent risk of physical harm or death. We remove flagged videos that violate our policies."
FOR KIDS: How to say no
It can sometimes be hard to stand up to your friends, so Childline offers the following tips on how to say no:
1) Say it with confidence:
Be assertive. It’s your choice and you don’t have to do something which makes you feel unsafe or uncomfortable.
2) Try not to judge them:
By respecting their choices, they should respect yours.
3) Spend time with friends who can say ‘no’:
It takes confidence and courage to say no to your friends. Spend time with other friends who also aren’t taking part.
4) Suggest something else to do:
If you don’t feel comfortable doing what your friends are doing, suggest something else to do.
Any child worried about peer pressure or online worries can contact on 0800 1111.
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Instagram says it has now deleted three accounts involved in promoting Momo.
An Instagram spokespman said: ";Nothing is more important to us than the safety of the people who use Instagram. Content or accounts that encourage others to harm themselves are not allowed and we will remove them as soon as we are made aware.
"We encourage anyone who comes across anything like this to report it and we have a team working 24/7 who prioritise reports related to self-harm.”
Momo ‘suicide game’ warning after schoolboy, seven, told pals the creepy character would kill them in their beds
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Momo ‘suicide challenge’ spread on WhatsApp sparks warning to parents after mysterious death of 12-year-old girl
To contact , you can call the helpline on 0808 800 5000 or children under 18 can call 0800 1111