Gwara Media fact-checking team received requests to the Perevrirka bot to verify a video shared on the Tiktok social network by the user Legboot. As of August 4, it had gained 2,9 million likes, more than 3,5 thousand reposts, and provoked active discussions.
What happened?
On August 1, Tiktok user Legboot shared a video in which he talked about a new bracelet for children called Ankle Monitor by the Little Yikes brand. Using the Tike tracker mobile app with “great features,” this device allows the user to monitor the child’s movements and shock them if they break the rules, such as leaving the room when it’s not allowed. The author compares the device to the bracelet used for people placed under house arrest. 24/7 operation is noted as one of the advantages of the device:
“…so that they [ed. — the child] was where it belongs,” the author notes.
Analysis
We started by checking out the Little Yikes brand that supposedly produces the “toy.”
However, such a brand does not actually exist. The name imitates the popular manufacturer of children’s toys, Little Tikes. The brand mark on the video device’s packaging completely imitates the original brand’s image.
In the video, the author states that the control is carried out using a mobile application called Tike Tracker. The same information is indicated on the packaging. It is also said that it is available for download on the App Store and Google Play platforms.
However, the information is false: no such application exists on the platforms.
The packaging also states that the product can be purchased at Walmart stores, but the product is not available on the chain’s official website.
After investigating the author’s page, we discovered that this user shares videos with fictional products. One such product is the Bugkiss insect-kissing device.
“The bugs are so small, and the lips are so strong. Bugkiss is here to fix that,” the alleged product description reads.
Among other products, there is also a beer stand with hair glued on it, which is allegedly sold on the shelf of one of the stores. However, in this case, the author filmed the entire process of creating a fictional product in the video.
In the end, the author of the video @legbootlegit himself admitted in an interview with the American Independent publication that the Ankle Monitor bracelet is a prank.
He said he collaborated with an artist with a TikTok page @shampooty to create a fake product. According to him, he was the author of the packaging and the fake app, and @shampooty created the ankle monitor device.
In an interview, commenting on the motives for creating and sharing ambiguous videos of fake products, @legbootlegit emphasized that he does it “mostly for the thrill” and spreads harmless misinformation for fun.
‘The world could use a little more crazy, a little more weird, a little more humour… I’m helping fill that void,’ creator says
The co-creator of the fake, user @shampooty, also shared a video and photo of the device on his Tiktok page, with the comment that the bracelet was created in collaboration with the talented user @Legboot, the author of the video.
We also noticed that all fake products on the @legbootlegit page have an authorship mark on the packaging, which proves that he is the direct author and developer.
So, we proved that there is no:
- Brand Little Yikes;
- Tike tracker mobile application;
- device for children called an Ankle Monitor.
The authors of the fake device and mobile application are Tiktok Legboot and shampoooty social network users.
Conclusion: the video is fake
by Anna Ormanzhy
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