Internet is a great place to learn new things but sometimes people misuse the platform and spread the wrong message.
We have seen several challenges on social media which were funny and stupid at the same time.
Now a new challenge is making rounds on the Internet which is called the skull-breaker challenge. This challenge is nothing but a risky way to hurt yourself.
The skull-breaker challenge involves two people kicking the legs from under a third person, making them fall over. Sounds stupid right? Of course, it is because the stunt being shared on viral video platform TikTok has caused serious injury among teenagers in the UK and US.
Stacy and Marc Shenker of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, say their 13-year-old son ended up in the hospital after two of his classmates performed the stunt for TikTok.
The Shenker’s son is in seventh grade and he was standing in the middle during the viral challenge and hit his head when he fell. Stacy was called by the school employees as they informed her about her son’s injury. When she arrived he was non-responsive and had to be taken to the hospital by ambulance.
The other two students involved in the challenge are minors and they have been charged with third-degree aggravated assault and third-degree endangering an injured victim, the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office’s public information officer told PEOPLE.
“Please talk to your children about the potential consequences when you participate in a ‘challenge’ or online trend,” said acting Camden County prosecutor Jill S. Mayer in a statement. “While the challenges may seem funny or get views on social media platforms, they can have serious and long-lasting health consequences.”
“Recently, a few CHPS students attempted to replicate ‘pranks’ or ‘challenges’ they saw on TikTok, and other platforms, resulting in classmates being injured – physically and emotionally,” Meloche said in the letter. “Often, children act impulsively and without considering the consequence of their actions.
If your child has an electronic device, ask them to share what apps they are viewing and using. Help them to understand the extreme unintended outcomes that may occur because of a fleeting moment of making a bad choice.”
“Parents need to know about this because it could happen again,” Stacy told NBC News. “It’s really opened our eyes to what is out there.”
The injured student needs some academic accommodations as he recovers from his hospital stay and is in physical therapy. “It was really very scary,” Stacy said of the ordeal. “My son is slowly making progress.”
A spokesperson for TikTok told PEOPLE: “As we make clear in our Community Guidelines, we do not allow content that encourages, promotes, or glorifies dangerous challenges that might lead to injury,” the spokesperson says in a statement.
“The behavior in question is a violation of our guidelines and we will continue to remove this content from our platform. We encourage everyone to exercise caution in their behavior whether online or off. To keep our platform safe, we provide a number of safety controls in the app and educational resources on our Safety Center.
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