Everybody loves a good social media challenge. The #10yearchallenge was worth the hype where most of us revisited our past and realised that our lives are the same old mess, but at least we look cuter…
But some challenges like the Blue Whale or Kylie Jenner Lips challenge was alarming and had freaked the hell out of us. It made us realise that while social media predators have unimaginable ways of getting into the heads of users, people, in general, are really, REALLY stupid!
A new ridiculous challenge has popped up recently, and even though it might not have entered India as yet, there’s a huge possibility that it will.
This new risky social media challenge which has led parents into a lot of fear is the ’48 Hour Challenge’, which encourages teens to stage disappearances for 48 hours.
“The challenge encourages teens to go missing for up to 2 days at a time and awards points for every social media mention while they are missing,” Tippencoe County Sheriff Bob Smith said in a release according to sources.
That means that the ‘missing’ children are rewarded when worried parents ask Facebook friends for help to find them.
One mother of a child who took part in the 48-hour Challenge opened up about the incident and said: “This is a competition and it’s sick. The anxiety it left our family is unspeakable. I was terrified they were dead or would be raped, trafficked or killed.”
“But these kids just think it’s funny. There was not even a moment of remorse when my child was taken into police custody and when the police brought my child home, I could see posts of selfies from the police car”, she added.
The challenge has raised a lot of concern and people are trying to spread as much awareness as they can:
To those of you trying to compete in this 48 hour challenge.
Your parents, family, and local police not only do not appreciate this.If you are actually missing, then you just gave the abductors a two day head start.
This is not only not acceptable, it can be deadly.
— Richard Morgan (@youneedaclue) February 19, 2019
Why cops are warning parents about the ’48-hour challenge’
This is beyond teenage stupid stuff. It’s something parents need to be discussing with their children. God forbid a child goes missing and this delays action. https://t.co/dsdXjvvcxZ
— kallie (@GirlKallie1372) February 19, 2019
To parents, please tell your teens not to participate in a new risky social media “48-hour challenge”! 😳
— David Michalowski (@DMMMedia) February 19, 2019
WHY IS THE 48 HOUR CHALLENGE A THING.
— rat boy (@jack_is_rat) February 18, 2019
Why do kids seem so self destructive these days. It’s one stupid challenge after another.
Police issue new warnings about '48-hour Challenge' as it resurfaces
https://t.co/GXvhEEBhUu— Jason (@thegozz_1) February 19, 2019
Just was reading an article about the #48hourchallenge do kids really have nothing better to do than to give their parents heart attacks? Go get a snickers and calm the fuck down.
— Macy Drake (@feministvettech) February 18, 2019
Oh good grief.🤦🏽♀️ Hopefully most kids will be too scared to actually try this or it is just a hoax type of thing…ugh.🙏🏽
Police are warning #parents about a #48HourChallenge that encourages #teens to go missing https://t.co/gPfQBPPFPn via @Yahoo
— Sesi (@beachydreamer) February 18, 2019
It’s alarming how easily teens are manipulated into such challenges. If you are a parent or a sibling, please monitor social media and smartphone usage of your kids to ensure their safety. You never know what they may be up to.