A Common TikTok Scam: “Look Who Died In An Accident”

It’s heartbreaking when someone dies in an accident, needless to say. It was particularly horrific in April of 2025, when a two-year-old baby regularly featured in viral TikTok videos was killed in a car crash, and his parents were seriously injured.

Preston Ordone was known as the “OK Baby” in the videos. Whenever adults gave him a task to do, he’d gleefully answer “OK!” and then completely ignore both the task and the grownups. His videos racked up millions of views apiece before his tragic death.

Stories like that play into the hands of Internet scammers, particularly on TikTok, where young influencers tragically pass away regularly. These scammers have no shame; they use the natural curiosity and sympathy of many users to steal their TikTok accounts and personal information.

Here’s how it works.

“Look Who Died in an Accident!” on TikTok

The racket is deceptively simple. A TikTok user receives a DM with the compelling, short phrase “Look who died in an accident!” along with a link to click. If the user is fooled and taps the link, they see a request to enter their TikTok password so they can view the sad story.

You’ve probably guessed what happens next. Those who click the link have surrendered their password, so their account is compromised and may be hacked or stolen. Some of the scam links also trigger a virus download that compromises the victim’s phone or computer as well.

Phishing is nothing new on social media platforms, of course. For that matter, it’s been around as long as email has existed. The urge to check out what appears to be a tragic story overcomes enough people’s caution, though, for the ploy to have been used for years on TikTok and other social apps.

Making things even worse, many of the DMs appear to come from the users’ friends or followers. The rip-off artists often use stolen TikTok accounts to message all of the accounts’ contacts, so many recipients don’t think twice before clicking on the nefarious link.

Be smart on TikTok — and on any online platform or website. Never click on unsolicited links unless you’ve fully vetted the creator or sender first. A moment’s curiosity can turn into hours, days, or weeks of headaches.