By Warning to parents over TikTok suicide video
Parents are being warned to keep their children off TikTok due to a distressing suicide video that is being shared.
Schools are alerting families to the footage, which has been circulating on the video-sharing platform for several days, as well as appearing on other social media.
Harrowing footage of Ronnie McNutt’s suicide has been shared thousands of times – sparking fury against social media giants for failing to stop its circulation.
Cyber safety expert Susan McLean posted a warning on her Facebook page, telling parents the video is often hidden in innocent-looking content such as cat videos.
She said: “Please ensure you do not allow your older teens on the app today if they have it. It is apparently now on Insta but they are at least removing accounts posting it. Check in with your kids today. They most likely will know about it. It is also being hidden behind Cat videos as well.
“Apparently it’s coming up in the ‘For you’ section so please let kids know NOT to watch anything that’s prompted. It often shows a male with glasses.”
TikTok is hugely popular with young people and many have reported coming across the video and being traumatised by the content. The app said it would ban accounts repeatedly uploading clips.
“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.”
“Our thoughts remain with Ronnie’s family and friends during this difficult time.”
The BBC has information on what to do if children see something upsetting online here.
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