Device brought to Tennessee high school shuts off cell phones, other electronics

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV/Gray News) - An item that may be on your child’s Christmas list this year may do more harm than good.

It is called a Flipper Zero, and at least one Tennessee school has already had an issue with it.

WSMV4 Investigates looked into what they are and how some kids are using them for trouble.

Lyn Moudy likes being able to get in touch with his son at Lebanon High School if he needs to.

“It is very important,” Moudy said. “They have had incidents at the school where a gun was brought.”

That’s why his son and many students bring a cell phone, but recently, a student brought a device to school that can interfere with that connection.

“That is pretty scary to think about that a kid could have something like that,” Moudy said.

It is called a Flipper Zero. Wilson County Schools confirmed that a student brought one to Lebanon High last month and used it to shut off some cell phones in the classroom.

“It is a little thing that does a lot,” Kyle Greenup with Kraft Technology Group said. “It is a multitool device.”

Greenup, a Nashville tech professional, said Flipper Zeros can interact with anything that uses a wireless frequency.

“You can read your pet’s microchip with this or your tire pressuring monitoring system with this,” Greenup said.

That’s not all. Greenup said Flipper Zeros recently got popular on TikTok for pranks like shutting off fast food displays. Amazon banned the device back in April since it can be used to skim credit cards.

“If you see your kid with one of these or it finds its way on the Christmas list, it is more about whether you trust your kid,” Greenup said. “It is not the device itself. What are they doing with it?”

Greenup said the device is limited and can only interfere with devices within about 50 yards. Wilson County Schools said the student was disciplined, and their network was never breached.

MNPS, Rutherford County Schools, and Williamson County Schools all said they have not had instances like this.

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