In the age of ubiquitous iPhones and countless other similarly impressive devices with built-in cameras, ‘selfies’ have become a standard part of the travel experience.
But they’ve also become a deadly travel hazard (at least in some cases).
A new study conducted by The Barber Law Firm ranks the countries around the world where it’s most dangerous to try and capture that selfie for posterity.
To develop this ranking, the Texas-based law firm researched selfie-related incidents around the world that occurred between March 2014 to May 2025. To identify these types of incidents, the law firm’s researchers turned to news reports found on Google News. In particular, the study counted cases where attempting a selfie directly led to injury or death.
Based on all of this data, it seems India is by far the most dangerous country in the world to try and take a selfie, accounting for a staggering 42.1 percent of all selfie-related incidents worldwide, according to the New York Post, which reported on the Barber Law Firm study.
Further underscoring just how dangerous it is to take a selfie in India, of the 271 selfie-induced casualties reported in the country, the vast majority (214) led to death, while 57 were injuries.
Why is India such a treacherous place for selfies exactly? The Barber Law Firm’s researchers seem to think it has to do with the combination of densely populated areas, easy access to risky environments (think: cliffs and train tracks) and last, but hardly least, the country’s strong social media culture.
But before you consider yourself warned, another well-known country came in at number two on the list of most dangerous places in the world to take a selfie.
Care to guess which country that might be?
If you said the United States, you would be right. The good news is there were far fewer deaths in the U.S. then in India.
The Barber Law Firm found 45 total casualties in the U.S. linked to the act of taking a selfie. Of that figure, 37 led to death and the remaining 8 escaped with just injuries.
Russia comes in at number three on the dangerous locales list. The country was found to have 19 selfie-related casualties. That includes 18 deaths and 1 injury. Pakistan is in fourth place with 16 deaths and 0 injuries, and finally Australia rounds out the top five. In the land down under there were 13 selfie deaths during the studied time frame.
One last note from the all-important study: The most common cause of selfie-related death globally is falling. This type of accident was to blame for 46 percent of all selfie deaths.
In other words, do yourself a favor and step away from the cliff’s edge, rooftop view, or any other similarly precarious spot where you hope to capture your smiling visage for the social media-sphere to see.
“Our research highlights a troubling trend where the pursuit of social media validation is literally costing lives. The perfect photo simply isn’t worth the danger,” Kris Barber, Founder and Principal Attorney at The Barber Law Firm, told the New York Post.
“What’s particularly concerning is that most of these tragedies could have been avoided by taking a few steps back or finding a safer vantage point.”
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