A new TikTok “challenge” is encouraging kids to jam objects into the ports of their school-issued Google Chromebooks in an effort to generate sparks, smoke, or even fire.

Law enforcement and school districts across the country are warning about the TikTok challenge, saying it risks posing a major fire hazard. In Arizona, students at Bullhead City Middle School “were briefly evacuated Thursday after a Chromebook laptop computer began emitting smoke in a classroom, burning internally,” the district said in a Facebook post.

“Six Chromebooks were also vandalized yesterday and today at Fox Creek Junior High School using the same TikTok challenge methods, though none caught fire,” the district added. 

The so-called “Chromebook Challenge” targets Google’s low-cost laptops since they are widely used in schools and issued to students. But it looks like some kids have been recording themselves deliberating damaging the laptops to take part in the TikTok challenge. 

The goal is to cause the Chromebooks to emit sparks or fire by inserting objects, such as a paperclip, pencil lead, or scissors, into the laptop’s charging or USB ports. The can create a social media spectacle, but will also destroy the Chromebook and put other kids at risk. One school has even warned that students are resorting to “stabbing” the laptop’s battery, which could cause the device to explode. 

Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. But TikTok blocked searches for the Chromebook Challenge and posted a banner that says, “Some online challenges can be dangerous, disturbing or even fabricated.”

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About Michael Kan

Senior Reporter

I’ve been working as a journalist for over 15 years—I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017.

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