YouTube bans ‘dangerous prank’ videos
January 16, 2019
By Nik Roseveare
YouTube videos that feature dangerous or emotionally distressing pranks have been banned from the video-sharing platform.
The move comes in response to so-called “challenges” that have sometimes resulted in death or injury – with the latest trend that has seemingly spawned the action seeing challengers attempt to complete every day tasks whilst completely blindfolded, inspired by the Netflix movie Bird Box.
A new message added to the site’s FAQ section reads: “YouTube is home to many beloved viral challenges and pranks. That said, we’ve always had policies to make sure what’s funny doesn’t cross the line into also being harmful or dangerous. Our Community Guidelines prohibit content that encourages dangerous activities that are likely to result in serious harm, and today clarifying what this means for dangerous challenges and pranks. From now on, the site said it would not allow videos that featured “pranks with a perceived danger of serious physical injury. This includes pranks where someone is tricked into thinking they are in severe danger, even if no real threat existed.”
The site added: “We also don’t allow pranks that cause children to experience severe emotional distress, meaning something so bad that it could leave the child traumatised for life.”