A routine trip to a local Home Depot turned into a distressing experience for a Cary family when a woman reported that her father was targeted by a group of teenagers engaging in a troubling trend.
In a social media post, she explained, “A group of teens appeared to be provoking him while filming—apparently part of a disturbing trend where individuals elicit a reaction and record it.”
Dr. Alice Cheng, a professor from NC State who has conducted research into social media and its impact, weighed in on the issue. She noted that while social media platforms may not explicitly encourage such behavior, they inadvertently create an environment where provocative content is rewarded, leading to an uptick in confrontational incidents.
“What we are seeing here from my view is a collision between viral attention incentives and the real-world risk,” Cheng said. “Teenagers are treating public spaces like social media platforms, but the consequences offline are far less predictable.”
Cheng told WRAL that when teenagers see certain content go viral, they often seek to recreate it, even if it could be damaging. “They [social media platforms] do reward the content that triggers a strong reaction, and that creates an incentive structure where confrontation feels profitable sometimes even,” she explained.
This incident is not isolated. Similar occurrences have been documented, with some videos garnering millions of views online. The impact of these trends has prompted some users to reconsider their engagement with social media, choosing to distance themselves from platforms that appear to reward negative interactions.
The Cary Police Department is currently investigating the reported assault and is attempting to contact the man who was allegedly targeted by the teens.
A Home Depot shopper who witnessed the events emphasized the unpredictability of human reactions and urged teenagers to exercise caution and awareness of possible repercussions when interacting with strangers.
“You’re not in a controlled environment; you don’t know how someone is going to react, you don’t know if someone has PTSD or if someone has anger management issues,” the shopper said. “So you do have to be careful when you are interacting with strangers.”
As of now, the incident remains under investigation. WRAL has reached out to Home Depot for comment and is awaiting a response.
https://www.wral.com/news/local/home-depot-incident-viral-video-trend-cary-january-2026/