Police and schools are issuing warnings to parents after a popular WhatsApp challenge has resurfaced in the United Kingdom.
CBS News reports the “Momo Challenge” gained international recognition last summer and was initially considered a hoax. It also became a widespread meme. Law enforcement investigated the influence of "Momo" in the August 2018 death of a 12-year-old in Argentina.
When children participate in the challenge, they contact a stranger concealing themselves as "Momo" using a creepy image and communicating through the Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp.
Momo encourages a participant to complete various tasks if they want to avoid being "cursed." The tasks can include self-harm, which Momo asks the participant to provide photographic evidence in order to continue the game.
The game ends with Momo telling the participant to take their own life and record it for social media.
The original image of Momo is a horror sculpture called "Mother Bird" by Japanese artist Keisuke Aisawa, which was on display in 2016 at the Vanilla Gallery in Tokyo. There is no evidence that Aisawa's company Link Factory was involved in the creation or execution of the Momo challenge.
Parents in the U.K. are finding the game on WhatsApp and within animated videos for children on social media.
"WhatsApp cares deeply about the safety of our users," a spokesperson told CBS News. "It's easy to block any phone number and we encourage users to report problematic messages to us so we can take action."
"Our advice as always is to supervise the games your kids play and be extremely mindful of the videos they are watching on YouTube," The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) wrote on Facebook. "Ensure that the devices they have access to are restricted to age-suitable content."
Schools across the U.K. are also alerting parents to the potential dangers of the viral videos.
The “Momo Challenge” is similar to the “Blue Whale” challenge, which some blame on the deaths of two teenagers in the U.S.
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