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Momo Challenge leaves Stacey Solomon terrified for her kids after YouTube and Fortnite hack
STACEY Solomon has revealed her fears for kids as the terrifying Momo challenge spreads online.
The pregnant mum-of-two lashed out at YouTube after seeing warnings that kids had been left screaming in fear over the disturbing character Momo started appearing on YouTube and Fortnite.
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Kids have reportedly been left terrified after the disturbing character - which has been linked to two children's deaths - emerged on their screens.
Mum and Loose Women panellist Stacey today demanded more be done over the Momo 'suicide challenge' game on social media in which players are threatened to follow 'orders' from the scary-looking avatar.
Taking to Twitter, she wrote: "Okay what the *** is Momo and why have I had to see this horrific thing about 22 times in a week. I’m being warned it’s on @YouTube KIDS and @FortniteGame is it? And if it is SORT IT OUT..."
She shared a message she had received that read: "Just FYI Jem & Stacey the Momo challenge sent the other day is apparently now in kids YouTube. People filming like kinder surprise reveals and it's actually talking about that game and other things.
"Don't know how YouTube haven't filtered this!"
Stacey is mum to two sons, Zachary, aged 10, and Leighton, six.
FOR KIDS: How to say no
It can sometimes be hard to stand up to your friends, so Childline offers the following tips on how to say no:
1) Say it with confidence:
Be assertive. It’s your choice and you don’t have to do something which makes you feel unsafe or uncomfortable.
2) Try not to judge them:
By respecting their choices, they should respect yours.
3) Spend time with friends who can say ‘no’:
It takes confidence and courage to say no to your friends. Spend time with other friends who also aren’t taking part.
4) Suggest something else to do:
If you don’t feel comfortable doing what your friends are doing, suggest something else to do.
Any child worried about peer pressure or online worries can contact on 0800 1111.
PARENTS SHARE MOMO HORROR STORIES
The character has sparked warnings across the world, with cops in Argentina even linking the game to the death of a 12-year-old who took her own life.
On August 28, 2018, the death of a teenager in India was also linked to the Momo "suicide game".
And Brit parents have previously told The Sun Online how the character, which was originally created by a Japanese artist with no links to the game, has appeared on their child's YouTube videos.
SAFETY NET: How to keep your child safe online
The Internet can be an amazing tool to help children learn and play.
But with the digital world changing all the time, how can you make sure your child is safe?
Set up parental controls
- Parental controls can be used to block upsetting or harmful content, control in-app purchases or manage how long your child spends online
- The filters can help control what time of day your child can go online, and to stop them from downloading apps they are too young for
Talk to your children
- Have regular conversations about what your child is doing online
- Explore sites and apps together
- Talk about what personal information they should share online
- Create a family agreement about what behaviour is appropriate when they are online
Do your research
- Check through websites your child will use through the
- Change privacy settings and turning off location sharing
If you need help now, you can phone experts on the free NSPCC & O2 helpline 0808 800 5002
One mum, from Swindon, said her six-year-old son was watching a gaming channel when the creature popped up and warned "I'm going to kill you".
She said: "The video paused half way through - but he didn’t press pause.
"Then the Momo face popped up and was making weird noises, he couldn’t hear everything it said but it was saying ‘I’m going to kill you’ and he thinks it said ‘I will hurt your friends’.
"He turned it off straight away and ran downstairs. He was absolutely terrified.
"He wouldn’t leave my side at all after it happened. He wouldn’t stay in a room alone and he had to sleep with me in my bed last night.
"He asked for our German shepherd to sleep on my bed also so she could chase away Momo if she got into my room."
But despite the warning scores of videos featuring the Momo Challenge - some featuring images of self-harm - remain live on YouTube and Instagram.
Charity Kidscape has said that social media companies are "not doing enough" to protect children from harmful or distressing content such as Momo.
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A YouTube spokesman said: "YouTube’s Community Guidelines prohibit content that's intended to encourage dangerous activities that have an inherent risk of physical harm or death. We remove flagged videos that violate our policies."
Instagram says it has now deleted three accounts involved in promoting Momo.
An Instagram spokespman said: "Nothing is more important to us than the safety of the people who use Instagram. Content or accounts that encourage others to harm themselves are not allowed and we will remove them as soon as we are made aware.
"We encourage anyone who comes across anything like this to report it and we have a team working 24/7 who prioritise reports related to self-harm.”
Momo ‘suicide challenge’ spread on WhatsApp sparks warning to parents after mysterious death of 12-year-old girl
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To contact , you can call the helpline on 0808 800 5000 or children under 18 can call 0800 1111
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