Schools send letters cautioning Momo suicide challenge can beat parental controls as scary girl sends pupils curses and dares
SCHOOLS have warned the Momo suicide challenge can beat online parental controls as fears escalate over the terrifying character that sends students curses and dares.
Kids as young as six have reportedly been left terrified after the disturbing bug-eyed woman emerged on their screens in games and videos.
Now UK schools up and down the country are warning parents to be on their guard as kids receive sick challenges to self-harm or death threats by the online character.
While the challenges first started to appear on WhatsApp, the creepy character has started to pop up in YouTube videos and the popular game Fortnite - bypassing parental controls.
Westbourne Primary School in Manningham, Bradford today warned: "IMPORTANT: 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. Be vigilant with your child using IT, images are disturbing. Stay safe."
Lancashire's Haslingden Primary School also warned: "One of the videos starts innocently, like the start of a Peppa Pig episode for example, but quickly turn into an altered version with violence and offensive language.
"Another video clip is going by the name of 'MoMo' which shows a warped white mask which is promoting children to do dangerous tasks without telling their parents.
"As you can imagine, this is highly distressing for the children to view. We encourage you to be vigilant when your child is using any device or watching any clips. We would also encourage all parents/carers to remind the children of our school online rules:"
The schools are just a few of dozens to be issuing warnings to families in light of the sick character sweeping the online world.
WORLDWIDE 'CRAZE'
Cops in Argentina have already linked the game to the death of a 12-year-old who took her own life, the Buenos Aires Times reported.
And on August 28, 2018, the death of a teenager in India was also linked to the Momo "suicide game".
It's not just schools that are concerned, however, with a child clinical psychologist warning the character could lead to serious long-term affects on a child's mental health.
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.
Childhood trauma expert Emma Citron told The Sun Online the Momo trend was “horrendous”, with children under 13 particularly vulnerable.
She said: "They can feel taken over by it, especially if it’s appearing frequently.
"It’s almost like it has power, deciding things and determining what they should do."
Police Service of Northern Ireland has even confirmed 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."
Today, mum and Loose Women panellist Stacey demanded more be done over the Momo 'suicide challenge' game on social media in which players are threatened to follow 'orders' from the scary-looking avatar.
Taking to Twitter, she wrote: "Okay what the *** is Momo and why have I had to see this horrific thing about 22 times in a week. I’m being warned it’s on @YouTube KIDS and @FortniteGame is it? And if it is SORT IT OUT..."
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
MOST READ IN NEWS
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."
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."
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 NO 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
To contact , you can call the helpline on 0808 800 5000 or children under 18 can call 0800 1111