Schools step up security in response to threats on TikTok
Educators announced plans to increase security in response to TikTok posts warning of shooting and bomb threats at schools around the country Friday as officials assured parents the viral posts were not considered credible.
The anonymous social media threats had many educators on edge, as they circulated in the aftermath of a deadly school shooting in Michigan, which has been followed by numerous copycat threats to schools elsewhere.
Schools in states including Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois and Montana said Thursday there would be an increased police presence because of the threats. At least one school district in Kaufman, Texas, announced plans to close the high school for the day in response.
The posts circulating online warned that multiple schools would receive shooting and bomb threats.
“We are writing to inform you and not alarm you,” Oak Park and River Forest, Illinois, school administrators said in an email to parents. “We have been made aware of a nationwide viral TikTok trend about ‘school shooting and bomb threats for every school in the USA even elementary’ on Friday, December 17.”
The administrators said local police departments would increase their presence around schools “out of an abundance of caution.”
In a statement on Twitter, TikTok said it was working with law enforcement to investigate.
“We handle even rumored threats with utmost seriousness,” the statement said, “which is why we’re working with law enforcement to look into warnings about potential violence at schools even though we have not found evidence of such threats originating or spreading via TikTok.”
The posts follow a disturbing trend that has had students acting out in response to social media challenges. In September, students across the U.S. posted videos of themselves vandalizing...
