TikTok bans viral Devious Lick trend: What is the lick challenge?

Bizarre TikTok trend has people stealing random objects from school, like ceiling tilesWikimedia Commons

A bizarre new TikTok trend has people stealing random objects from their schools, including hand sanitizer, toilet paper dispensers, confiscated goods, ceiling tiles, and more. Now, TikTok has taken a stance against it.

TikTok trends have become a cultural phenomenon within the platform.

We’ve seen everything from cooking recipe trends and frozen honey trends to comedic skits like the Deja Vu challenge, Bugs Bunny challenge, and more.

However, some users have taken it a step further and participated in controversial trends like faking conditions and ailments and pretending to get arrested.

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The latest trend, though, might be the most bizarre one yet. It’s one thing to knick a whiteboard marker or a pen from school, but a hand sanitizer dispenser? Printers and ceiling tiles?

That’s what these teenagers are doing, picking out the weirdest objects to steal from school in an attempt to out-do other users on the platform.

TikToker being arrested alongside policeTikTok: GageBills/Unsplash
TikTok trends have become increasingly bizarre in 2021.

In one of the first videos to gain traction, a student reveals that he’s stolen a hand sanitizer dispenser from his school’s bathroom, referring to it as a “devious lick.”

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The strangest part is that’s only the beginning.

It then moves on to videos of other students stealing everything from people’s shoes to toilet paper dispensers, car doors, confiscated phones, ceiling tiles, fire extinguishers, and even a full-blown traffic light head.

 

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People are discouraging others from taking part in the trend because, well, it’s stealing.

TikTok bans devious lick trend

On September 15, TikTok officially denounced the trend, and removed the hashtag.

“We expect our community to stay safe and create responsibly, and we do not allow content that promotes or enables criminal activities. We are removing this content and redirecting hashtags and search results to our Community Guidelines to discourage such behaviour.”

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They also asked that users be kind to schools and teachers.

However, it hasn’t stopped wide-eyed TikTokers from trying to cash in on the trend in the hopes that their video will be the next one to go viral.