If films have thought us anything, flamethrowers are usually very dangerous, can often be exploded with a single shot to the canister, and are good for clearing out rooms of alien eggs.

However, a company in China has managed to dramatically reduce the size of flamethrowers, and incidentally, give them a new purpose - fighting off perverts. The small device looks no bigger than a pen and can be carried discretely on your person or in a bag, and can deliver a stream of fire of up to 50 centimetres with a temperature of 1,800 degrees celsius.

In other words, it'll permanently scar or disfigure anyone who gets near you if you use it - and they're being sold for anywhere between €10 and €30 on online marketplaces such as Teebao. The device is being marketed exclusively to women as a protection aid, however there are fears in China that children could easily purchase them without any checks.

Per the Beijing Youth Daily, the devices have become extremely popular in China, with some stores selling upwards of 300 a month. However, Chinese police have issued warnings to users that they're A) extremely dangerous and go off in a bag, and B) they're actually illegal.

 

Via Telegraph / Beijing Youth Daily