POLICE have warned that action may be taken against people who carry out acts as part of the so-called "killer clown" craze.
The clown craze that originated in the US involves people dressing up as clowns and trying to scare or intimidate members of the public walking in the street.
Police Scotland said it had received a "few sporadic reports of individuals dressed as clowns" in some areas in Scotland.
Read more: Schools "putting too much focus" on celebrating academic success
It is understood the reports did not specifically involve threats or violence.
Police said anyone "seeking to cause distress and potential harm to anyone" should be aware that action would be taken.
The craze is thought to have been inspired by a number of clown-related pranks in America and has seen incidents reported across the UK recently.
Last week a hoaxer admitted a "sighting" in Glasgow was faked.
A Facebook page called "Killer Clowns in and around Glasgow" said a clown had been spotted underneath a bridge.
Read more: Schools "putting too much focus" on celebrating academic success
The post was shared more than 1,000 times before the poster admitted the picture had been taken elsewhere.
Supt David Duncan, of Police Scotland, said: "We have had a few sporadic reports of individuals dressed as clowns in some areas in Scotland.
"It is assessed that there is a current trend of similar incidents on social media, many of which have been confirmed as hoaxes and emanate from overseas.
"The reports which have been made to local police officers are being investigated and do not specifically involve threats or violence.
Read more: Schools "putting too much focus" on celebrating academic success
"However, any person seeking to cause distress and potential harm to anyone should be aware that police will take action.
"If anyone has any concerns they should report the matter to police."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel