YOUTUBE profiting from sick pranksters who post shocking fake suicide videos online
YOUTUBE is profiting from sick pranksters who post shocking fake suicide videos online, clocking up to 35million views a time.
The Sun today reveals a twisted trend of YouTube users tricking friends, family and the public into believing they've killed themselves – all to attract viewers.
Suicide is the biggest killer of people under 35, with 1 in 15 Brits having attempted to take their own lives. Every 90 minutes in the UK someone succeeds.
But YouTube benefits from horrifying, graphic clips where pranksters pretend to kill themselves.
The Sun uncovered hundreds of shocking videos: some have millions of views, and have been live on YouTube for years.
Mental health charities warned The Sun that these videos could even inspire real suicides, due to the detailed methods shown in some clips.
One clip saw a woman fabricate her own death in a bathtub filled with fake blood, filming her husband's reaction when he returned home.
The woman's distressed partner weeps, cries out her name, and even steps into the bathtub to resuscitate her.
Another five-year-old video sees a Brit prankster fake an angry phone call, before jumping into the Thames – an act that claims 25 lives a year – stunning onlookers. It has more than 3million views.
Google is clearly failing to contain inappropriate YouTube clips – while continuing to profit from them. The Sun is now calling for these sick suicide prank videos to be removed, as part of our You're Not Alone campaign, which aims to save lives by helping to prevent suicide.
Speaking to The Sun, Brian Dow, managing director at Mental Health UK and co-chair of the National Suicide Prevention Alliance said: "It really should not need stating that suicide is not a joke or a prank.
"Every day people lose parents, children, siblings and friends, and to see it trivialised in this way is both cruel and incredibly irresponsible.
"To present this very serious issue in this way can have immediate and lasting effects not only on the viewer, who might be triggered by what they see on screen, but also the victims of the ‘pranks’ that we see being performed."
A spokesperson for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport told The Sun: "Suicide is a very serious issue that affects millions of people every year.
"We would urge YouTube to consider whether videos that trivialise someone taking their own life should be on its platform."
YouTube suicide hoax shame – the most twisted clips exposed
Here are some of the shocking fake suicide clips we saw...
- A woman pretended to kill herself in the bathtub, even penning a phoney suicide note.
- A young man created a phoney 'Russian Roulette' game on live video, loading bullets into a revolver (actually a convincing pellet gun) before pulling the trigger on his head.
- A woman faked her own suicide, laying on the floor below a high window, as if she'd fallen from a height. Her distressed partner's reaction was filmed.
- A woman pretended to hang herself in her bathroom, waiting for her partner to return home.
- A man from a notorious UK pranking video channel pretended to gas himself in his own car on a busy British street as part of a sick "suicide social experiment".
- A popular YouTube duo were split apart by an argument after one brother threatened suicide by dangling off a balcony.
- Two videos involved YouTubers pretending to overdose on pills in a bid to prank family members.
- One distressing clip saw a child pretend to jump out of a window to prank another minor.
- Several pranks seen by The Sun led to victims calling the emergency services, wasting their precious time.
'Suicide is no joke'
One separate suicide hoax clip earned 35million views, and was posted by a YouTube Verified account – legitimised by YouTube as a major content creator.
Many of the videos seen by The Sun feature blood, gore, and otherwise distressing scenes.
YouTube's own policy strictly forbids this kind of content: "It's not okay to post violent or gory content that's primarily intended to be shocking, sensational, or gratuitous."
Several clips we discovered even featured children.
One clip saw a young boy fake his own death, by pretending to have fallen out of a window – tricking his brother, also a minor.
Another involved a man threatening to kill himself with a knife, only halting the prank when his little sister – a young child – began crying.
All of these videos share are shameless bids to earn online clicks by mocking the tragedy of suicide.
YouTube failing 'to keep young people safe'
Many of these videos had no warning screens, and only a handful of clips were hidden behind "age gates" – which are very easy to get around.
Speaking to The Sun, Andy Burrows, associate head of child safety online at NSPCC, warned over the risks of suicide prank videos being freely available on YouTube.
"Videos trivialising the terrible reality of suicide are irresponsible, potentially highly dangerous and certainly should not be easily accessed by young people," he explained.
"But if YouTube won't remove this kind of content from its website then it must ensure it is kept out of the reach of children and teenagers, and there must be warnings that the content is inappropriate for them."
YouTube has an incentive to keep controversial videos on the site to entice viewers – helping grow ad revenue and attracting investment.
The online giant also benefit from risqué clips: clicking ads generates cash for creators, too.
YOU'RE NOT ALONE
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost - to suicide.
It doesn't discriminate, touching the lives of people in every corner of society - from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality stars and footballers.
It's the biggest killer of people under the age of 35, more deadly than cancer and car crashes. And men are three times more likely to take their own life than women.
Yet, it's rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and take notice, now.
That is why The Sun today launches the You're Not Alone campaign. To remind anyone facing a tough time, grappling with mental illness or feeling like there's nowhere left to turn, that there is hope.
To mark World Suicide Prevention Day, over the course of this week, we will tell you the stories of brave survivors, relatives left behind, heroic Good Samaritans - and share tips from mental health experts.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our bit to help save lives.
Let's all vow to ask for help when we need it, and listen out for others.
You're Not Alone.
YouTube 'driving suicide pranks posted for clicks'
These videos could inspire others to create their own copycat clips – and lead to people getting hurt.
"If people are posting harmful and dangerous content there needs to be immediate steps to have it removed. It is deeply worrying to see so many of these videos still live on the site."
Speaking to The Sun, a spokesperson for an offending prank channel said: "One of the boys in the team had a close friend of his who committed suicide. He approached us with the suicide social experiment idea to raise awareness and discourage people.
"We often get messages from fans who will tell us that they didn't feel comfortable talking about it, but by sharing our social experiment it helps them start that conversation and encourages their friends/family to reach out."
In a statement given to The Sun, a YouTube spokesperson said: "While many prank comedians on YouTube have grown fan bases around the world through original and fun content, we also have strict policies that prohibit misconduct on YouTube.
"In some cases we age restrict flagged material that, while not in violation of those guidelines, may be unsuitable for younger users."
YouTube also told us that it had removed one video discovered by The Sun, and age-restricted the rest. It added that videos uploaded to YouTube must comply with the site's Community Guidelines, and that YouTube relies on community members to flag inappropriate content.
Videos flagged on YouTube are reviewed 24 hours a day, and the site claims to act quickly to remove content in violation of those rules. Repeated violations can result in account termination.
YouTube's shameful history exposed
This isn't the first time YouTube has been exposed for hosting shocking content.
In December last year, popular YouTube vlogger Logan Paul sparked controversy after filming the body of a suicide victim.
The clip, which was posted to YouTube, showed the recently deceased corpse of someone who had hung themselves in a forest in Japan.
Paul earned millions of views within hours, but was widely condemned. He eventually removed the video, issued an apology, and took a month-long break from YouTube.
The Sun has also uncovered a rogue steroids advert, a secret cache of porn, smut playlists designed to "lure kids", and webcam sex ads on YouTube.
YOU'RE NOT ALONE: WHERE TO GET HELP
If you, or anyone you know, needs help dealing with mental health problems, the following organisations provide support:
- CALM, , 0800 585 858
- Childline, , 0800 1111.
- Heads Together,
- Mind, , 0300 123 3393
- Papyrus,, 0800 068 41 41
- Samaritans, , 116 123
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