Parents warned to beware of FAKE Peppa Pig cartoons on Youtube with disturbing storylines

fake cartoons, Youtube

by Siam Goorwich |
Published on

If your children watch cartoons such as Peppa Pig on Youtube, you NEED to read this...

Parents have been warned to pay extra attention to what their children watch on Youtube after a raft of FAKE episodes of popular cartoons such as Peppa Pig and Thomas the Tank Engine with disturbing storylines have appeared on Youtube.

The episodes - which appear on the surface to be genuine - are actually crude spoofs, which often feature adult themes and violence.

The issue was flagged up by American mum-of-one and journalist Laura June after she caught her daughter watching a fake episode of Peppa Pig with an upsetting dentist storyline.

fake cartoons, Youtube
Laura June caught her toddler watching this upsetting fake Peppa Pig video (Credit: Youtube) ©Youtube

Writing on The Outline, Laura explained: "The video, titled '#Peppa #Pig #Dentist #Kids #Animation #Fantasy,' is completely horrifying. Though the animation sort of looks like an actual episode of Peppa Pig, it’s poorly done, and the narrative quickly veers into upsetting territory. Peppa goes to the dentist, who has a giant needle and a lot of scary tools. The pigs are mysteriously forest green rather than pink. Burglars appear to try to burgle."

But it's not just knock-off Peppa Pig videos you have to beware of. There are also fake episodes of many other popular children's shows including Doc McStuffins, Thomas The Tank Engine and Minions and even Disney's Frozen.

fake cartoons, Youtube
Disney's Doc McStuffins has also had an upsetting reimagining (Credit: Youtube) ©Youtube

And while you may think that these spoof videos are actually intended for adults - as a joke - Laura doesn't believe they are. She argues: "This is not like a video of an animated Peppa Pig getting high with Snoop Dogg (that is also available) made for adults to laugh at. These videos are for kids, intentionally injected into the stream via confusing tags, for them to watch instead of legit episodes of beloved shows."

Youtube, of course, recommend that parents only let their children watch videos through the Youtube for Kids app{ =nofollow}. However although videos on this app are vetted more closely than on the normal channel, some disturbing videos we still found to have made it through the net.

fake cartoons, Youtube
The videos may clearly be fake, but that doesn't stop them being recommended to children (Credit: Youtube) ©Youtube

In a statement released to the BBC, a spokesperson for Youtube said: "We take feedback very seriously. We appreciate people drawing problematic content to our attention, and make it easy for anyone to flag a video.

"Flagged videos are manually reviewed 24/7 and any videos that don't belong in the app are removed within hours. For parents who want a more restricted experience, we recommend that they turn off the Search feature in the app."

If you're worried about your children's safety online, read the NSPCC's Online Safety guidelines here.

Were you aware of these fake cartoons on Youtube? Are you worried that your children might watch them? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter

READ MORE...

Experts claim Peppa Pig cartoons are making kids 'emotionless zombies'

NSPCC call for goverment to fix the 'Flaw in the Law' of anti-grooming legislation

How can we protect our kids from online predators?

Just so you know, we may receive a commission or other compensation from the links on this website - read why you should trust us