After Blue Whale, new Momo WhatsApp Challenge is Pushing Teens to Suicide ?

[ARMOUR]

 

Following the horrific blue whale challenge, that spread on social media like wildfire, and consumed lives of more than 100  children, an unsettling new “game” called the Momo WhatsApp challenge has been reported in some parts of Latin America.

 

According to a report by The Sun, the so-called game is feared to be linked to the death of a 12-year-old girl in Argentina.

 

What is Momo?

Momo is a disturbing new WhatsApp 'suicide' game feared to have taken the life of a 12-year-old girl.

According to the Computer Crime Investigation Unit in the Mexican state of Tabasco, the game started on Facebook where members were "challenged" to communicate with an unknown number.

The avatar used by Momo is an image of a woman with grotesque features and bulging eyes taken from the work of Japanese artist Midori Hayashi, who is not associated with the game in any way.

Speaking to BBC News Portuguese language site, Rodrigo Nejm of Brazil's NGO Safernet said it's unclear how widespread the game is but claimed it was most likely a form of "bait" used by criminals to steal data and extort people on the internet.

 

How many deaths has the WhatsApp suicide game been linked to?

Cops in Argentina are linking the game to the death of a 12-year-old who took her own life and have issued a warning to parents, the Buenos Aires Times reported.

They are hunting for the “adolescent with whom she exchanged those messages”.

The National Police of Spain have warned against the "absurd challenges".

 

Argentinian officials are currently investigating the identity of the mysterious "controller." They've reported that the number is associated with an 18-year-old.

This isn't the first social media game that has encouraged children to commit suicide. Since 2016, a social media game called the Blue Whale challenge has been proposed to be linked to at least 130 deaths, according to The Sun (but authorities have not yet found it directly responsible for any). Instagram flagged the #bluewhalechallenge tag with a warning that the posts were known to lead to self-harm, but did not remove the posts.

 

Unlike Momo, Blue Whale originated in a Facebook group. The administrator assigned daily tasks to complete. The earlier tasks included watching horror movies and waking up at unusual hours, but escalated to self-harm and suicide.

 

“WhatsApp cares deeply about the safety of our users," a WhatsApp spokesperson said in a statement to Fox News. "It’s easy to block any phone number and we encourage users to report problematic messages to us so we can take action.”

 

?Article Sources:

1. Tom's Guide
2. Firstpost
3. The Sun