Latest news with #TitaniaJordan
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Florida teens' dangerous social media challenge has police warning parents, homeowners
Police in Florida issued a warning after a group of minors took part in the "door kick challenge," a social media trend aimed at frightening homeowners. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post that five juvenile suspects were walking around a neighborhood in Riverview, Florida, when two of them approached a house. Officials said one of the individuals, who was wearing a ski mask, kicked the front door and fired an airsoft gun. The minors then fled the area. Deputies said the "door kick challenge" could turn into a dangerous situation and encouraged parents to talk to their children. Deadly Social Media Trend Threatens Kids, Homeowners Defending Themselves: 'Children Are Going To Get Killed' "The door kick challenge is a prank circulating on social media. #teamHCSO is asking parents to speak to their children about this dangerous trend, which could end in tragedy," the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. Read On The Fox News App Video released by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office shows an individual approaching the front door before kicking it several times, firing an airsoft gun and then fleeing the area. Texas Bill Pushes Strictest Social Media Ban For Minors In The Nation Titania Jordan, CMO and chief parent officer at Bark Technologies, a parental control app, previously told Fox News Digital that teens are doing this social media trend to get attention. "This sort of content is going to get likes. It's going to get comments. It is going to get shares. It's going to encourage children to try to emulate it because it's clout — they gain clout from their peers because of this," Jordan said. "Any challenge like this, children aren't thinking, 'Is this the right thing to do? Is this safe?' They're thinking, 'I want validation,' and children are going to get killed. I mean, just one person who is armed who gets their door kicked in by a kid, and you're gonna have another national headline that is very sad." Fox News' Audrey Conklin contributed to this article source: Florida teens' dangerous social media challenge has police warning parents, homeowners Solve the daily Crossword
Fox News
2 days ago
- Fox News
Florida teens' dangerous social media challenge has police warning parents, homeowners
Police in Florida issued a warning after a group of minors took part in the "door kick challenge," a social media trend aimed at frightening homeowners. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post that five juvenile suspects were walking around a neighborhood in Riverview, Florida, when two of them approached a house. Officials said one of the individuals, who was wearing a ski mask, kicked the front door and fired an airsoft gun. The minors then fled the area. Deputies said the "door kick challenge" could turn into a dangerous situation and encouraged parents to talk to their children. "The door kick challenge is a prank circulating on social media. #teamHCSO is asking parents to speak to their children about this dangerous trend, which could end in tragedy," the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said. Video released by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office shows an individual approaching the front door before kicking it several times, firing an airsoft gun and then fleeing the area. Titania Jordan, CMO and chief parent officer at Bark Technologies, a parental control app, previously told Fox News Digital that teens are doing this social media trend to get attention. "This sort of content is going to get likes. It's going to get comments. It is going to get shares. It's going to encourage children to try to emulate it because it's clout — they gain clout from their peers because of this," Jordan said. "Any challenge like this, children aren't thinking, 'Is this the right thing to do? Is this safe?' They're thinking, 'I want validation,' and children are going to get killed. I mean, just one person who is armed who gets their door kicked in by a kid, and you're gonna have another national headline that is very sad."
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- General
- Yahoo
IYKYK: Here Are the Popular Teen 'Texting Codes' Every Parent Should Know
Millennial parents are no strangers to acronyms. In fact, Millennials and Gen Xers are credited with making "LOL" (laughing out loud) so popular on instant messenger, that it eventually earned a spot in the Oxford English Dictionary in 2011. [1] (Take that, Gen Alpha!) But even with their impressive acronym cred, parents of today's teens are finding their kids texting in a mix of letters and words that may as well be an entirely different language. (IYKYK, am I right?) And while most of the acronyms are harmless, some forms of messaging are not. Specifically, 'texting codes' can signal cases of cyberbullying and serious mental health concerns in teens. Acronyms vs. 'Texting Codes' While an acronym is the first letter of each word in a phrase, Titania Jordan, Chief Parent Officer of online safety company Bark Technologies explains texting codes as a combination of acronyms, characters, words, and even emojis that represent hidden meanings. As a result, texting codes can be much harder for parents to understand—which unfortunately is exactly the point. 'Acronyms are [used] for ease of typing, as it's just quicker to tap out 'ILY' instead of 'I love you,'' Jordan says. 'Text codes are different. They can be used to cover your tracks in case someone is monitoring your messages.' Because texting codes are meant to look like harmless symbols or slang words, parents are more likely to overlook them. For example, parents may not be aware that '🍃' is code for "marijuana", or 'seggs' is a code word for "sex". With that said, the use of codes can also simply be a way kids choose to connect, explains Erin Walsh, author of It's Their World: Teens, Screens, and the Science of Adolescence and co-founder of Spark & Stitch Institute. 'Texting codes certainly can be used to avoid adult detection of risky behaviors,' Walsh says. 'But they can also just be shorthand ways for young people to build connections with friends and demonstrate belonging to a group.' Popular Acronyms and Meanings New acronyms pop up every day, according to Jordan, but here are some of the most common ones used by kids: BRB - "Be right back" BTW - "By the way" FOMO - "Fear of missing out" GOAT - "Greatest of all time" GTG - "Got to go" GR8 - "Great" IMO - "In my opinion" ISO - "In search of" IYKYK - 'If you know you know' (meant to imply that there's an inside joke) ILY - "I love you" IRL - "In real life" JK - "Just kidding" KMS - "Kill myself" KYS - "Kill yourself" L8R - "Later" LMAO - "Laughing my ass off" LOL - "Laugh(ing) out loud" NP - "No problem" OMW - "On my way" OFC - 'Of course' ROTF - 'Rolling on the floor' (typically in laughter) SMH - 'Shaking my head' ('I don't believe it' or 'that's so dumb') STFU - "Shut the f**k up" TBH - "To be honest" TYVM - "Thank you very much" WYD - "What you doing?" WTF - "What the f**k?" WYA - "Where you at?" WYD - "What you doing?" WUF - "Where you from?" Popular Texting Codes and Meanings These code-like acronyms have underlying meanings that kids may want to keep hidden: ASL - "Age/sex/location" CD9 or Code 9 - "Parents are around" DTF - "Down to f*ck" FBOI - "F*ck boy" (or a guy just looking for sex) FWB - "Friends with benefits" LMIRL - "Let's meet in real life" NP4NP - "Naked pic for naked pic" POS - "Parent over shoulder" TDTM - "Talk dirty to me" Concerning Texting Codes Parents Should Never Ignore Experts agree the rise of acronyms and codes that refer to self harm or mental health struggles is alarming, and they should be taken seriously. In fact, the latest research suggests that social media codes can be used to identify tweens and teens at risk for suicide, which makes it critical for parents to be able to spot concerning conversations. [2] According to Jordan, these are the codes that should raise immediate red flags if you see them appear in any inappropriate social media posts involving your teen: KMS - "Kill myself" KYS - "Kill yourself" STFU - "Shut the f**k up" Unalive - "Kill" or "dead" Sewerslide - "Suicide" Grippy sock vacation - "A stay in a psychiatric treatment facility" - "mental breakdown" I had pasta tonight - "I had suicidal thoughts" I finished my shampoo and conditioner at the same time - "I'm having suicidal thoughts" 'If someone's commenting 'KYS' on your child's Instagram or texting it to them, it's potentially a sign of bullying,' Jordan warns. 'It could be causing negative effects on their sense of self-worth and their mental health.' STFU ("shut the f*ck up") can be used as an expression of disbelief between friends, but it can also signal cyberbullying when used publicly on social media. How to Support Your Teen Experts give the caveat that simply knowing what these codes mean doesn't always reveal the context in which they're being used. 'A single acronym or code rarely tells the whole story,' Welch says. For example, 'KMS' can signal serious suicidal ideation, but it's also used to describe trivial moments of embarrassment or annoyance in personal text exchanges. Welch emphasizes continued communication will help you discern between a cause for concern and simply a need for some digital-age skill-building. She suggests the following: Don't assume the worst. Ask your child for an explanation or background of what you've seen before you launch into a lecture. 'It is okay for there to be long silences as your child sorts through their feelings about online interactions,' Welch says. Their reflection will shed the best light on the meaning behind what you've seen. Avoid becoming a 'spy.' "A quick 'Gotcha!' reaction to concerning acronyms or codes can create confusion, increase conflict, and may even encourage more secrecy as teens try to avoid adult surveillance and punishment," Welch says. Let your child know you're there to help. Receiving text codes related to self harm or suicide can raise a host of difficult questions for teens, Welch says. For example, 'Is my friend serious?' 'Should I talk to someone about this?' or 'What should I do next?' Reassuring your child that you are there to support them will foster honest conversations to determine next steps. Read the original article on Parents Solve the daily Crossword
New York Post
06-07-2025
- New York Post
Deadly social media trend threatens kids, homeowners defending themselves: ‘Children are going to get killed'
Potentially dangerous social media trends are getting kids, and potentially homeowners, into trouble this summer while kids are out of school. Two trends in particular are going viral on social media, including the 'UrbanEx,' or 'urban exploration,' challenge and the 'door-kicking challenge.' Advertisement 'There's a new trend every day. … You go to the FYP, the For You Page, you see what's trending. And then pretty soon, you'll see content created by children, which is in and of itself problematic. A lot of the children under the age of 13 … are legally not allowed to even be on social media,' Titania Jordan, CMO and chief parent officer at Bark Technologies, a parental control app, told Fox News Digital. Social media challenges prompt users to create more 'content that elicits a reaction,' she explained, 'that has viral components, resurfaces and resurfaces again, thanks again to the algorithm.' 'This sort of content is going to get likes, it's going to get comments, it is going to get shares. It's going to encourage children to try to emulate it because it's clout — they gain clout from their peers because of this,' she said. '…Any challenge like this, children aren't thinking, 'Is this the right thing to do? Is this safe?' They're thinking, 'I want validation,' and children are going to get killed. I mean, just one person who is armed who gets their door kicked in by a kid, and you're gonna have another national headline that is very sad.' Law enforcement agencies across the country are warning of both trends, the former of which challenges social media users to explore abandoned buildings and the latter of which challenges them to kick in strangers' doors. Advertisement While the door-kicking challenge has existed for years, multiple agencies have issued recent warnings, indicating a possible uptick in the trend this summer. An Ohio police department recently warned about the challenge, saying it is investigating four incidents that occurred in Byesville. 'Reports of doors being kicked in on homes began to come in during the middle of the night. Officers have collected evidence from neighborhoods indicating that a social media trend called the 'Door Kicking Challenge' is behind these acts,' the Byesville Police Department said in a Facebook post. 'The suspects are not entering the homes; instead, they are merely kicking the front doors and then fleeing the scene.' Advertisement 8 Social media trends could put kids and homeowners at risk this summer. Friendswood Police Department / Facebook Byesville police added that authorities are collecting physical evidence from the scenes of these crimes, including video footage. Byesville PD Chief Daulton Dolan told Fox News Digital that the door-kick challenges take 'ding dong ditch' to a new level, especially in stand-your-ground states like Ohio. 'If you feel that your life or a life of your family members are threatened, you can take deadly force against somebody right there on the spot. … So, for instance, if someone kicks open [a] door in the middle of the night, and the homeowner believes that they're coming in can physically harm them, they're going to shoot at them if they have a gun nearby,' Dolan said. 'And in Southeast Ohio … we've seen that before.' Advertisement 8 The Friendswood Police Department accused kids of ringing a doorbell and using an object to hit a front door. Friendswood Police Department / Facebook 8 The door-knock challenges could take 'ding dong ditch' to a new level if they happen in a stand-your-ground state, the Byesville PD Chief Daulton Dolan warned. Additionally, in Ohio, if a person's leg enters another person's home by kicking a door in, that can result in a burglary charge, on top of possibly trespassing charges, Dolan explained. Homeowners might also face a lengthy process in the criminal justice system if they choose to defend themselves with a gun if someone kicks their door open, Dolan said. 'Our job would be: if the homeowner did fire a weapon if somebody had kicked open their door, we would conduct an investigation into that. Of course, we would seize the weapon that was used in it as evidence. We would take any kind of interviews and reports, medical exams, pictures, measurements, everything … and then we would turn it over to the Guernsey County Prosecutor's Office … [who] can rule it out as a justified homicide or they can move it up further and go to a grand jury.' 8 A 77-year-old said her door was damaged by kids doing the challenge. Fox 26 Houston / Facebook The Fleetwood Police Department in Pennsylvania on June 8 warned that a 'TikTok 'door knock' or 'door kick' challenge encourages kids and teens to record themselves doing just that; knocking on and/or kicking random doors, usually late at night.' 'While 'ding dong ditch' has been a hallmark for decades of kids who were looking to have a little mischievous fun, today's youth have taken things to a more serious level by kicking at doors and ultimately causing damage,' the department wrote. 'Besides the financial consequences to homeowners who are often left with the expense of repairs, there is the potential for a child to be seriously hurt or even killed by someone who believes, especially in the middle of the night, that their residence is being broken into and ultimately determines there is an imminent threat to life and property.' Advertisement The Flower Mound Police Department and The Oak Harbor Police Department in Washington also said they have seen the trend on TikTok. The Fort Worth Police Department in Texas issued a similar warning recently. 'This trend has been reported across the country, including right here in Texas,' the Fort Worth PD said. 'It is imperative that individuals partaking in this trend understand that even if no burglary or theft occur, this behavior is illegal and considered vandalism and can lead to criminal charges. More critically, it can be mistaken as an attempted break-in, potentially prompting dangerous or defensive responses from homeowners.' Advertisement The department further urged parents 'to speak with their children about the risks and consequences of participating in trends like this,' adding that 'what may seem like a prank can result in very real trouble and/or danger.' 8 Bradenton Police are searching for a suspect they accused of kicking a door and running off. Bradenton Police Department / Facebook Meanwhile, another trend called 'UrbanEx' has made headlines recently for putting participating social media users behind bars. The 'challenge' encourages users to explore abandoned buildings, from old schools to churches to retail and entertainment establishments. The Harris County Constables in Precinct One in Texas recently announced the arrests of three 18-year-old men, who are accused of trespassing in the Houston Astrodome, which has been closed since 2009. Advertisement The Constables office said security guards for the venue saw the three men enter the stadium around midnight and later spotted them running across a parking lot and jumping a fence. The three teens are charged with trespassing. 'Sneaking into closed old historic buildings is dangerous,' Constable Precinct One Alan Rosen said in a June 10 statement. 'You are taking a risk for yourself and first responders, and it is against the law.' 8 The suspect was caught on camera attempting the social media stunt, the Bradenton Police Department said. Bradenton Police Department / Facebook A June 8 video showing the interior of the Astrodome posted by had nearly 845,000 views on TikTok. Advertisement Last year, a 23-year-old man named Guillermo Leflore, known as 'Urbex Tarzan' on TikTok, was arrested after officials said he trespassed on private property while exploring steam tunnels. It wasn't his first time attempting a dangerous stunt for social media; he is accused of previously attempting to climb the Milwaukee Art Museum, as FOX 6 Milwaukee first reported. Ari Lightman, professor of digital media and marketing at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy, told Fox News Digital that social media trends resemble what used to be games of truth-or-dare 'on steroids.' 8 The 'UrbanEx' challenge encourages users to explore abandoned buildings. AP 'You're reaching tens of thousands of people. You're not daring somebody face-to-face,' Lightman said. 'Why are they doing that? Is it just to get likes, and those likes might turn into followers, and those followers might turn into advertisers, and those advertisers might turn into profits for some people? Is it even real, or is it AI generated?' Defenders of the UrbanEx trend say it exposes historically significant structures that have been left to rot; many social media users have been calling on local city leaders to revive abandoned schools, houses, churches and event spaces. 'Just the general lack of respect amongst children today, whether it's for people's property in the classroom or other people's feelings, it's a big problem. They're lacking empathy and respect because they're spending too much time in front of a screen and not enough understanding in real-life human emotion,' Jordan said. 8 Law enforcement agencies across the nation are warning homeowners about the dangerous trends. Fox 26 Houston / Facebook She advised parents to join a Facebook group called 'Parenting in a Tech World' where the 'latest trends are being shared there from parents whose children are experiencing it in real time.' She also advised parents to talk to their kids candidly and calmly about what they are seeing online, and Google the trends that are appearing on the social media pages. 'Maybe your kid's playing Roblox and you don't think it's safe. Google dangers of Roblox. Show your child how other children have been harmed by adults they have been lured by on that platform so they realize you're not just being overprotective,' she said. 'All you can do is have candid calm conversations with them, and not just talking to them or talking at them, but asking them what they've seen. What did they think? What do they think the dangers are of hanging around an old building and recording it? Maybe they say they don't know, and that can encourage a conversation right there.'
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Yahoo
Deadly social media trend threatens kids, homeowners defending themselves: 'children are going to get killed'
Potentially dangerous social media trends are getting kids, and potentially homeowners, into trouble this summer while kids are out of school. Two trends in particular are going viral on social media, including the "UrbanEx," or "urban exploration," challenge and the "door-kicking challenge." "There's a new trend every day. … You go to the FYP, the For You Page, you see what's trending. And then pretty soon, you'll see content created by children, which is in and of itself problematic. A lot of the children under the age of 13 … are legally not allowed to even be on social media," Titania Jordan, CMO and chief parent officer at Bark Technologies, a parental control app, told Fox News Digital. Social media challenges prompt users to create more "content that elicits a reaction," she explained, "that has viral components, resurfaces and resurfaces again, thanks again to the algorithm." Over Half Of Top 100 Mental Health Tiktok Videos Contain Misinformation: Report "This sort of content is going to get likes, it's going to get comments, it is going to get shares. It's going to encourage children to try to emulate it because it's clout — they gain clout from their peers because of this," she said. "…Any challenge like this, children aren't thinking, 'Is this the right thing to do? Is this safe?' They're thinking, 'I want validation,' and children are going to get killed. I mean, just one person who is armed who gets their door kicked in by a kid, and you're gonna have another national headline that is very sad." Read On The Fox News App Law enforcement agencies across the country are warning of both trends, the former of which challenges social media users to explore abandoned buildings and the latter of which challenges them to kick in strangers' doors. Texas Bill Pushes Strictest Social Media Ban For Minors In The Nation While the door-kicking challenge has existed for years, multiple agencies have issued recent warnings, indicating a possible uptick in the trend this summer. An Ohio police department recently warned about the challenge, saying it is investigating four incidents that occurred in Byesville. "Reports of doors being kicked in on homes began to come in during the middle of the night. Officers have collected evidence from neighborhoods indicating that a social media trend called the 'Door Kicking Challenge' is behind these acts," the Byesville Police Department said in a Facebook post. "The suspects are not entering the homes; instead, they are merely kicking the front doors and then fleeing the scene." Byesville police added that authorities are collecting physical evidence from the scenes of these crimes, including video footage. Byesville PD Chief Daulton Dolan told Fox News Digital that the door-kick challenges take "ding dong ditch" to a new level, especially in stand-your-ground states like Ohio. "If you feel that your life or a life of your family members are threatened, you can take deadly force against somebody right there on the spot. … So, for instance, if someone kicks open [a] door in the middle of the night, and the homeowner believes that they're coming in can physically harm them, they're going to shoot at them if they have a gun nearby," Dolan said. "And in Southeast Ohio … we've seen that before." Additionally, in Ohio, if a person's leg enters another person's home by kicking a door in, that can result in a burglary charge, on top of possibly trespassing charges, Dolan explained. Homeowners might also face a lengthy process in the criminal justice system if they choose to defend themselves with a gun if someone kicks their door open, Dolan said. "Our job would be: if the homeowner did fire a weapon if somebody had kicked open their door, we would conduct an investigation into that. Of course, we would seize the weapon that was used in it as evidence. We would take any kind of interviews and reports, medical exams, pictures, measurements, everything … and then we would turn it over to the Guernsey County Prosecutor's Office … [who] can rule it out as a justified homicide or they can move it up further and go to a grand jury." The Fleetwood Police Department in Pennsylvania on June 8 warned that a "TikTok 'door knock' or 'door kick' challenge encourages kids and teens to record themselves doing just that; knocking on and/or kicking random doors, usually late at night." "While 'ding dong ditch' has been a hallmark for decades of kids who were looking to have a little mischievous fun, today's youth have taken things to a more serious level by kicking at doors and ultimately causing damage," the department wrote. "Besides the financial consequences to homeowners who are often left with the expense of repairs, there is the potential for a child to be seriously hurt or even killed by someone who believes, especially in the middle of the night, that their residence is being broken into and ultimately determines there is an imminent threat to life and property." The Flower Mound Police Department and The Oak Harbor Police Department in Washington also said they have seen the trend on TikTok. 'Skinnytok' Weight-loss Trend Could Lead To Food Deprivation, Experts Caution The Fort Worth Police Department in Texas issued a similar warning recently. "This trend has been reported across the country, including right here in Texas," the Fort Worth PD said. "It is imperative that individuals partaking in this trend understand that even if no burglary or theft occur, this behavior is illegal and considered vandalism and can lead to criminal charges. More critically, it can be mistaken as an attempted break-in, potentially prompting dangerous or defensive responses from homeowners." The department further urged parents "to speak with their children about the risks and consequences of participating in trends like this," adding that "what may seem like a prank can result in very real trouble and/or danger." Meanwhile, another trend called "UrbanEx" has made headlines recently for putting participating social media users behind bars. The "challenge" encourages users to explore abandoned buildings, from old schools to churches to retail and entertainment establishments. The Harris County Constables in Precinct One in Texas recently announced the arrests of three 18-year-old men, who are accused of trespassing in the Houston Astrodome, which has been closed since 2009. The Constables office said security guards for the venue saw the three men enter the stadium around midnight and later spotted them running across a parking lot and jumping a fence. The three teens are charged with trespassing. "Sneaking into closed old historic buildings is dangerous," Constable Precinct One Alan Rosen said in a June 10 statement. "You are taking a risk for yourself and first responders, and it is against the law." A June 8 video showing the interior of the Astrodome posted by had nearly 845,000 views on TikTok. Child Safety Must Be Priority Of Tiktok Negotiations, Parents Group Urges Vp Vance Last year, a 23-year-old man named Guillermo Leflore, known as "Urbex Tarzan" on TikTok, was arrested after officials said he trespassed on private property while exploring steam tunnels. It wasn't his first time attempting a dangerous stunt for social media; he is accused of previously attempting to climb the Milwaukee Art Museum, as FOX 6 Milwaukee first reported. Ari Lightman, professor of digital media and marketing at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy, told Fox News Digital that social media trends resemble what used to be games of truth-or-dare "on steroids." "You're reaching tens of thousands of people. You're not daring somebody face-to-face," Lightman said. "Why are they doing that? Is it just to get likes, and those likes might turn into followers, and those followers might turn into advertisers, and those advertisers might turn into profits for some people? Is it even real, or is it AI generated?" Defenders of the UrbanEx trend say it exposes historically significant structures that have been left to rot; many social media users have been calling on local city leaders to revive abandoned schools, houses, churches and event spaces. "Just the general lack of respect amongst children today, whether it's for people's property in the classroom or other people's feelings, it's a big problem. They're lacking empathy and respect because they're spending too much time in front of a screen and not enough understanding in real-life human emotion," Jordan said. She advised parents to join a Facebook group called "Parenting in a Tech World" where the "latest trends are being shared there from parents whose children are experiencing it in real time." She also advised parents to talk to their kids candidly and calmly about what they are seeing online, and Google the trends that are appearing on the social media pages. "Maybe your kid's playing Roblox and you don't think it's safe. Google dangers of Roblox. Show your child how other children have been harmed by adults they have been lured by on that platform so they realize you're not just being overprotective," she said. "All you can do is have candid calm conversations with them, and not just talking to them or talking at them, but asking them what they've seen. What did they think? What do they think the dangers are of hanging around an old building and recording it? Maybe they say they don't know, and that can encourage a conversation right there."Original article source: Deadly social media trend threatens kids, homeowners defending themselves: 'children are going to get killed'
