How to Report a YouTube Channel: 5 Steps (Anonymous)

To report a YouTube channel:

1. Go to the channel's main page.
2. Click the 'About' tab (or 'More' menu on mobile).
3. Click the flag icon.
4. Choose 'Report user' from the menu.
5. Select the violation type (spam, hate speech, harassment, and so on) and submit.

Reports are anonymous. The channel owner will not see who reported them.

JUMP TO SECTION:

• How to Report a Channel on YouTube
• How to Report YouTube Videos
• FAQ: Is Reporting a YouTube Comment Anonymous?
• Does YouTube Reporting Work?

Reporting a YouTube channel is no fun, but it’s necessary when a creator is irresponsible on the platform. Whether they’re posting abusive content or harassing someone (possibly even you), it makes YouTube less enjoyable. After all, you came for laughs and community – not mudslinging.

But reporting a user is serious. You want to make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons and not because the option exists.

Here’s why most people flag a channel on YouTube:

• Report spam or abuse
• Report a fake YouTube account or channel impersonation
• Make YouTube aware of inappropriate content
• Report harassment on YouTube (or bullying)
• Stop the spread of misinformation/disinformation
• Report violations of YouTube’s Community Guidelines and Terms of Service

How to Report a Channel on YouTube

Rather than flagging individual videos, you can report users on YouTube by visiting their channel homepage. Here’s how:

1. Log in to YouTube and find the channel you need to report.
2. Click About on the channel navigation tab.
3. Under the stats column, click the YouTube report button (flag icon).
4. Select a reporting option from the drop-down menu: block user, report channel art, report profile picture, or report user.
5. Continue filling out the form to finish the report.

Unfortunately, you can’t report a YouTube channel on mobile. You’ll need to find a desktop computer and complete the steps above to file a report.

How to Report YouTube Videos

If you need to report a video (not a channel or YouTube user), follow these steps:

1. Click the menu icon (three horizontal dots) below the video you’re watching.
2. Click Report.
3. Choose a reason for reporting the video: sexual content, violence, abuse, spam, misinformation, bullying, etc.
4. Continue filling out the form to finish the report.

Do you need to flag a YouTube video using your smartphone? Here’s how:

1. Find the video you need to report.
2. Tap the video frame, then tap the gear symbol that appears. Select Report.
3. Select a reason for reporting the video.
4. Tap Report.

FAQ: Is Reporting a YouTube Comment Anonymous?

Yes! According to YouTube, no one will know you’ve reported a comment. The same goes for videos, playlists, thumbnails, live chat messages, channels, and links.

To report a YouTube comment:

1. Click the three dots to the right of the message and select Report.
2. Choose a reason, such as misinformation, hate speech, spam, or abuse.
3. Click Report again to finish the form.

You have the right to report comments, but be careful what you mark as spam on YouTube. You might get banned from the platform if you misuse the feature.

Does YouTube Reporting Work?

The reporting system works well enough, but that doesn’t mean YouTube removes every piece of content someone reports. First, YouTube reviews the content to see if it violates community guidelines.

If it does, YouTube will either:

• remove the content from its platform
• restrict the content to mature audiences

Also, try to avoid thinking, How many reports to take down this YouTube video? According to YouTube, no amount of reporting will make a difference if reviewers don't see a violation.

Reporting users is a bit of a downer, so let’s brighten things up with a better YouTube task: making friends.

Here are six ways to partner with creators for awesome YouTube collabs.