The latest viral TikTok social media challenge has school systems issuing a warning. Loudoun County, Virginia, and Prince George’s County, Maryland, schools have sent letters to parents warning about the challenge, known as the Chromebook Challenge, where students jam a sharp object into the charging port of a Chromebook laptop, causing a fire. Chromebooks are widely distributed to students in many school districts. The letter from Loudoun County reminds parents about costs connected to deliberate damage. “Families will incur costs for damages to their assigned devices.” Adding: “These challenges often seem like harmless pranks or jokes to students, however the consequences are quite real.”
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The letter from Prince George’s County warns that “Not only does this lead to expensive repairs or replacements, but it also creates a real safety risk.” “We’re asking for your help in talking to your child about the importance of taking care of their school devices and thinking twice before participating in online challenges like this. As a reminder, families are responsible for the cost of any deliberate damage done to school-issued Chromebooks.” A search of “Chromebook Challenge” on TikTok leads users to a resources page on interacting with online challenges. “Some online challenges can be dangerous, disturbing or even fabricated,” the social media outlet wrote on its search page.
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