As a parent, not knowing what teens are exposed to on social media can be anxiety-inducing. Many parents are concerned about how regular social media use can impact their teens’ mental health. Unfortunately, in some cases, the ways in which teens use social media also can be physically dangerous. Authorities in Pennsylvania are warning parents and teens about the dangers of TikTok challenges after two separate social media stunts caused significant harm, with one of them resulting in the death of a teenager. Both of the TikTok challenges involved reckless driving.
During a press briefing on September 23, 2025, Northampton County District Attorney Stephen Baratta spoke of two incidents in which teens drove recklessly because they wanted to create content for social media. The attempts to make interesting content quickly took a horrifying turn.
In June, while trying to create content to share on TikTok, a 17-year-old boy rode on top of an upside-down table tied to the back of a car. Another teen drove the car to the Freedom High School parking lot in Bethlehem. Tragically, the stunt killed the 17-year-old riding on the table. Now, the teen driver faces involuntary manslaughter charges.
“Unfortunately, the juvenile driver recklessly operated the vehicle at a significant speed such that it whipped the rider sitting on the table into another parked vehicle, resulting in the death of the 17-year-old,” Baratta explained, per ABC News.
The other incident Baratta described also occurred because a 19-year-old and a 20-year-old wanted to film content for a TikTok challenge. It happened in March and involved “surfing” on the trunk of a vehicle as a friend drove around a parking lot. While “surfing” on the vehicle, the 20-year-old woman fell and experienced “catastrophic head injuries.” Baratta noted that the injuries are “permanent.” The 19-year-old driver also faces charges.
Baratta made it clear that the teens involved in these stunts weren’t trying to harm their friends, but their “grossly negligent and reckless” actions still had devastating consequences, ABC News reported. He warned parents that social media challenges can be “a serious issue of public safety.”
“It’s important for the public to understand that these challenges can have severe, real-world consequences, creating significant risk to participants and sometimes the bystanders as well,” Baratta warned.
