Rise of the YouTube 'auditors': Bizarre craze sees wannabe social media stars ... trends now
YouTube 'auditors' are on the rise in the UK, with wannabe social media stars flying drones over police stations, shopping centres and chemical sites and being watched by thousands of people online - even at the risk of violence.
Worried police chiefs have issued officers with official guidance on how to handle members of the public who have taken to relentlessly filming outside police stations as well as other public and private sector buildings.
A trend that took off in the US has now crossed the Atlantic and has self-proclaimed auditors attracting subscriber lists in the hundreds of thousands.
The video-makers say they are checking up on organisations' performance including health and safety compliance while also asserting the right to film and take photographs on public land - and their clips can bring in hefty advertising revenue when watched on sites such as YouTube or TikTok.
But the incidents can escalate into angry confrontations, most recently when a furious chemical company boss tried to smash a drone controller after catching a 'hobbyist auditor' snooping on his PPE use.
A man (pictured) tried to hit the drone controller out of auditor DJ Audits' hand when filming at Libra Speciality Chemicals Ltd in Manchester
More staff were seen rushing out to confront the YouTuber and asking him to leave, in one of a soaring number of online videos posted by self-styled 'auditors' filming outside buildings
The drone and controller are pictured on the pavement after the clash which was posted online
Some of the most popular auditing YouTube accounts feature footage outside police stations across the UK, embassies, shopping centres and City of London institutions.
One of the most popular YouTube 'auditor' accounts, called Auditing Britain, has 256,000 subscribers for videos including footage of Kensington police station in west London as well as officers in Walworth, south London, Hertfordshire and Essex.
DJ Audits, one of Britain's leading YouTube auditors, went to Libra Speciality Chemicals Ltd in Manchester last month to 'check their compliance' with health and safety.
But after he began to film the chemical site using his GoPro and drone, company staff swiftly came out of the workplace to confront him and question his right to record their business.
DJ Audits, who refused to reveal his identity, informed staff that he did not need their permission as he was filming on 'public property'.
An argument ensued and a man who staffers identified as their 'boss' tried to hit the drone controller out of the auditor's hand as he told him to 'f**k off now'.
The YouTuber claims he has never experienced a confrontation like this one while carrying out an 'audit'.
Leicestershire-based DJ Audits, who has 161,000 YouTube subscribers, insists he remained on the public pathway and that everything he did was legal.
He is heard in the footage telling staff that he doesn't need their permission as he 'is on public property' and claims he is using the drone to check they are following health and safety guidelines.
He also tells them he would be using his drone to check no one is smoking and everyone was wearing PPE on their site.
The Youtuber told MailOnline that he has never experienced a confrontation like this before while on an audit.
He claimed that while many of his 161,000 YouTube subscribers tune in to see this element of his filming, he never sets out to be confrontational.
DJ Audits said: 'I feel the incident was shocking and was unusual and an over-reaction.
'No laws were broken - the main thing for me is that I like to let people know what I'm doing. I'm always honest and transparent.
After DJ Audits began to film the chemical site using his GoPro and drone, a company staffer (pictured) swiftly came out of the workplace to confront him and question his right to record
The footage shows an employee apparently trying to slap the drone controller out of his hand before telling the man with the camera to 'f**k off now'
'I show them the drone and the camera and told them about the YouTube channel in order to eliminate any notion of a threat.'
He said he picked Libra because it seemed a 'point of interest' due to it being a chemical company - and that his 'audit' activities are about 'promoting the rights of photographers and drone flyers'.
DJ Audits said people 'watch my videos for so many reasons', with some just wanting to 'see drone footage over the buildings'.
He said he picked Libra because it seemed a 'point of interest' due to it being a chemical company - and that his 'audit' activities are about 'promoting the rights of photographers and drone flyers'.
But he said there was 'no denying' that footage with 'heated confrontation' will often make 'the views go through the roof' - though added that even if the video does not feature confrontation, it 'will still be published'.
He said of having his drone hit in the clash at Libra: 'It's the first time someone has done that but it is not the first time someone has come right up close into my personal space.
'I feel the incident was shocking and was unusual and an overreaction.'
DJ Audits said he 'pushed back' as a form of self-defence and then rang Greater Manchester Police to attend the site but later cancelled this request.
He said: 'The law allows you to defend yourself proportionately and with reasonable force.
'If someone is coming up to you, you can't just smack them in the nose but as you can see in the video, I push him back.
'It was the first time I had ever had to ring the police. I have communicated with the police since and I would like to pursue a new offence where somebody endangers the safety of a drone flyer.
'I want to show my viewers that this shouldn't be shrugged off as I think a court would take it much more seriously.'
Greater Manchester Police has confirmed that an investigation into the incident is ongoing, but said no arrests have been made.
Libra were contacted repeatedly for comment via email and telephone, but failed
