Keep your children away from this killer game! Centre issues advisory on trending MOMO Challenge

New Delhi, August 29: Children often come under the influence of social media games that intrigue them to perform things that are usually not meant for them. Recently, the Blue Whale game had provoked many young minds to commit suicide and just like this game other game called the MOMO challenge which is in top trending. To prevent it, the Cyber Crime Division on Monday evening issued an advisory on life-threatening game Momo challenge. And warned news channels not to report false news regarding the game and connect any deaths or suicides to it without verification.

The department asked children and parents to stay away from Momo challenge, and no content should be shared related to Momo challenge and not to send or receive any invitation containing links to the game. They have also advised not to download the game nor images related to the game on their mobile phones.

The advisory stated that parents and teachers too should keep a watch on the behavior of their students and children. “Youngsters should be educated about the dangers of Momo Challenge. Teachers should keep parents informed about children who are suspected to be playing Momo Challenge, conduct random checks of mobile phones of students and take necessary steps if the game is downloaded on the mobiles,” it stated.

“The parents need to counsel children about the dangers of the game and tell them not to indulge in dangerous activities, like taking selfies from rooftops etc. They should keep a constant watch on their children and prevent them from playing the game,” the advisory said.

After the Blue Whale Challenge, now the country is facing this killer Momo Game Challenge. Links of this ‘game’ are getting circulated mostly through WhatsApp. The center has alerted officials in the districts to keep a tab on this matter. An account by the name of “Momo” on Facebook, WhatsApp and YouTube challenges users to communicate with a particular number, and complete a series of tasks which ultimately cause death.

The game uses a haunting image of a woman, her face distorted, taken from the work of Japanese artist Midori Hayashi. If the user refuses to follow the instructions, he or she is subjected to threats of fake allegations, hacking of social media accounts, and is shown disturbing images.