TikTok's Chromebook Trend Sparks Major Safety Concerns in Schools Nationwide

A new and alarming trend has emerged on TikTok, capturing the attention of students nationwide. Involving laptops, specifically Google Chromebooks, the social media trend is raising concerns among parents and educators.

This viral trend encourages risky behavior that could lead to serious consequences, both in terms of physical safety and school discipline. As it gains traction in classrooms, we need to understand what it entails, why it's dangerous, and what can be done to stop it.

As of May 2025, the dangerous TikTok trend has taken hold in Connecticut, leading to school evacuations across the state. The social media trend involves students recording themselves inserting objects like pencils, paper clips, aluminum foil, and pushpins into the charging ports of their Google Chromebooks, intentionally causing electrical short circuits that can ignite fires.

According to NBC Connecticut, officials revealed Newington High School was evacuated last week due to the trend. The horrific incident filled a classroom with smoke, prompting an immediate response from local firefighters.

"The room at the time of the fire was filling with smoke," Newington fire marshal DJ Zordon said. "We did see video from students … and that's one of the biggest things. The batteries that are essentially catching on fire, once they burn, they’re producing this toxic smoke."

DJ Zordon continued, "It's more than just a trend. It causes a lot of disruption. The school has to be evacuated, firefighters respond to the fire house and subsequently to the scene, it takes resources from any other emergencies that might be happening at that time."

It's not hard to see why this Chromebook trend on TikTok is raising concerns all over the country. Encouraging children to shove random objects into laptop USB ports in hopes of starting a fire is not just reckless, it's extremely dangerous.

Dr. Maureen Brummett, superintendent of Newington Public Schools, shared details about the recent incident that exemplifies the threat.

"We were able to do an investigation with student interviews and other methods that we use, and it became clear that the damage was done intentionally," she explained. "That it wasn't a malfunctioning Chromebook, but rather a student had intentionally done things to it that caused it to smoke and eventually melt."

While the motivation behind the disturbing trend remains a total mystery, Dr. Brummett emphasized its seriousness, noting that it's destructive, expensive, and dangerous.

"Chromebooks are expensive and they're going up in price, so when a student does intentionally destroy a Chromebook, it's their responsibility to replace it," she stated. "We have [an] insurance program, but it's not covering intentional damage."

Multiple school districts across Connecticut have launched investigations, and disciplinary actions are expected: "For a student [who] would do that deliberate destruction of school property, they will have a very serious consequence," Dr. Brummett disclosed.

"Please take good care of your Chromebooks. They're expensive," she asserted. "We do need you to have them at school in good working order. Plus, the type of damage that was recently seen was very dangerous and someone could have gotten hurt, and it was very disruptive to the school environment."