SCHOOLS across Wales have been warning parents about a ‘harmful and disturbing’ video which has gone viral on social media platform TikTok.
The footage, of a man killing himself, which has been circulating on the platform for several days, originated on Facebook and has also been shared on Twitter and Instagram. It is now on TikTok.
Some schools have taken to social media themselves to warn parents and carers. The latest is Milford Haven Community Primary School.
The school said on their Facebook page: “It has come to our attention via the BBC news that there is some extremely disturbing and upsetting footage currently being streamed on social media outlets that children may have downloaded to their mobile devices.
“Whilst we are mindful of bringing attention to it, we know that many pupils use social media channels such as TikTok and there may be no warning to the video appearing on a feed.
“We just wanted to let parents and guardians know so that appropriate precautions could be put in place. Advice such as not viewing TikTok videos or deleting the app for 72 hours has been suggested while the app creators ensure the video is deleted and removed.
“We would also remind parents that it is extremely important they are aware of all the apps their children are using on mobile devices as all apps are vulnerable to misuse by adults and can be used in this way.”
A spokesperson for Facebook said: “We removed the original video from Facebook last month, on the day it was streamed, and have used automation technology to remove copies and uploads since that time.”
TikTok’s press office released a statement this week saying: “Our systems have been automatically detecting and flagging these clips for violating our policies against content that displays, praises, glorifies, or promotes suicide,” a representative said.
“We appreciate our community members who’ve reported content and warned others against watching, engaging or sharing such videos on any platform, out of respect for the person and their family.”
It is reported that some users are sharing the video, disguised behind images of kittens or other content. Others have put together their own videos warning about the content and urging people to delete it.
TikTok’s algorithms often recommend content from people not directly followed by a user.
Several people have streamed their suicides on Facebook Live since its 2015 launch.
Facebook, which owns Instagram, has also faced criticism that the platform shares content sensationalising self-harm and suicide.
