Teens across the UK, inspired by a TikTok trend, fake positive tests for Covid-19 in hopes of being kicked out of school.
A number of videos uploaded to the popular social media platform show British teens mixing various liquids to get a positive test.
The videos are uploaded under the search term #fakecovidtest where other teens can find them with over 6.5 million views.
A dedicated account called @ .fakecovidtests has over 20,000 subscribers.
Soft drinks and sour fruits are known to have the potential to display a false positive result, which has called the reliability of the tests into question.
Clips on TikTok show young people mixing various liquids, including applesauce, Coca Cola, vinegar and kiwi fruit, to trigger a positive reaction to the test and be kicked out of school.
It comes as schools across the UK are forced to send children home amid outbreaks of the virus.
Education officials have described the new trend in social media as “massively unnecessary” as schools continue to tackle the ongoing health crisis.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, shared an urgent message with parents via the i.
He said: “We are sure that this concerns a very small minority of students and that for the most part the tests are being used correctly.
“However, we urge parents to make sure that the tests are not misused, and we suggest to students who are interested in chemical reactions that the best place to learn more about them is in chemistry class. at school.”
A TikTok spokesperson added, “Our community guidelines make it clear that we are removing content that includes misleading information causing harm, including medical misinformation related to Covid-19, and anti-vaccine misinformation more broadly.
“Since the start of the pandemic, we have worked to provide our community with access to reliable information, and through our partnership with Team Halo, scientists around the world have explained how vaccines are created and tested for their safety. ”
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Source: www.times-series.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-07-02 15:21:48
