Is the Blue Whale Challenge a boogeyman preying on vulnerable teenagers or is it an urban legend — an explanation for the rise in children attempting to kill themselves. There is no definitive proof that there exists a shadowy ‘suicide game’ from Russia that invites players to participate in 50 challenges, with the last one ending in the player committing suicide.
Recently, the suicide of a 14-year-old boy from Mumbai was linked to the game. Another 14-year old from Solapur who left his house to complete a task was rescued by the police.
While there have been no reported cases of children from Bengaluru participating in the challenge, helplines have noted a rise in number of parents seeking help for their children battling Internet and gaming addiction. They attribute this trend to the reports on the Blue Whale Challenge.
Nagasimha G. Rao, nodal supervisor for Childline, Bengaluru, said the 1098 helpline has seen at least 15 cases of mobile and Internet addiction this month, as opposed to one or two calls last month. None of these instances are related to the Blue Whale addiction, but parents are anxious,” Mr. Rao said.
Childline authorities have asked parents who called them to keep tabs on their children and have suggested counselling for various types of addiction. “We are also urging parents to check the browser history and monitor their children’s social media activity,” he added.
Manoj Kumar Sharma, additional professor, Department of Clinical Psychology, who also heads the Service of Healthy Use of Technology clinic at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, said parents are becoming more conscious about what games and sites their children use. He said there was a need for parents to communicate with their children and discuss what they are doing on their mobile phones and computers. “If parents check the browsing history of their children, they should be non-judgmental and should discuss it without criticising them,” he said, adding that parents should keep their children informed if they install a lock on gadgets.
Mobile sent to experts
The South-East Division police have decided to give the phone belonging to M. Tech student Goluguri Sai Sarath, who allegedly jumped off the seventh floor of his hostel building last week, to cybercrime experts to find out if his death had any links to the Blue Whale Challenge.
A few hours after returning from a party, Sarath, 21, who was studying at the International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore (IIITB), deleted data from his mobile phone and jumped to his death.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, South-East, M.B. Boralingaiah said: “We are still not able to ascertain the cause of the suicide. But we have sent his phone to see if there was any connection to the game,” he said, adding however that this was highly unlikely.
