How to report a YouTube ad on PC, or an app on the App Store, and which reports need the phone
Short answer. How to report a YouTube ad on PC: click More or Info on the ad while it plays, choose Report ad, and complete the Google Ads form that opens. How to report an app on App Store from a computer: open reportaproblem.apple.com, sign in with the Apple Account that downloaded the app, and pick "Report a scam or fraud". Both work in a desktop browser; several dating and chat apps in this guide do not.
A report filed from a desk is usually a better report. The computer keeps the URL, the item number, the timestamp and the screenshot in one place, and a long description is easier to type on a keyboard. The catch is that a growing share of platforms put the Report button only inside the phone app, and a few report desks exist only as an email address.
This guide sorts 24 services by that one practical question: can the report start from a computer, and if it cannot, what is the desk-side fallback? For each one it gives the path, what evidence the form accepts, and what the reporter is told afterwards, because that last point varies more than people expect. Valorant and Steam tell the reporter when action is taken; LinkedIn, OfferUp and most dating apps never do.
Which reports can you file from a computer?
Most large platforms accept a report from a desktop browser: YouTube, Google Play, eBay, Twitch, Patreon, Tumblr, LinkedIn, Fiverr, Upwork, Steam, Roblox, itch.io, Redbubble and DeviantArt all have a web Report path. Apple's App Store reports run through a website. Hinge, Kik and Lemon8 keep the Report button inside the phone app, so a computer user falls back to the help-centre form or a published email address.
The table below is the compiled view, starting with how to report a YouTube ad on PC and ending with the work platforms. "Desk" means the report can be started in a desktop browser or desktop client; "app" means the button exists only on the phone. The last column records what each platform says it tells the reporter, taken from its own help pages where those pages could be read.
| Service | Starts on a computer? | Where the report starts | What the reporter hears |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube ad | Desk | More or Info on the ad, then Report ad | Email confirmation; review "if appropriate" |
| YouTube video or channel | Desk | More, then Report | Status in Report history (computer only) |
| App Store | Desk | reportaproblem.apple.com | No outcome published |
| Google Play | Desk | Flag as inappropriate on the web listing | No outcome published |
| eBay listing | Desk | Floating question mark on the listing | Not stated |
| Vinted | Desk and app | ⓘ icon, then Report | Not stated |
| Discord | Desk | Message or profile menu, Report | Reporter never named to the account |
| itch.io | Desk | Report link at the foot of the game page | "Action will be taken if necessary" |
| Redbubble, DeviantArt | Desk | Copyright notice form or email | Notice may be shared with the seller or uploader |
| Valorant | Desk (PC client) | Scoreboard or match history | In-game notice if the player is banned |
| Call of Duty | Desk and console | Scoreboard, View Profile, Report Player | Not stated |
| Steam | Desk | Profile menu, Report Player | Steam message when action is taken |
| Roblox | Desk and app | Report Abuse in the experience or profile | Not stated |
| Hinge | App only | Profile or Past Matches list; help form from a desk | Report is confidential |
| Kik | App only | Chat, name, Report User; [email protected] | Not stated |
| Lemon8 | App only | In-app tools; [email protected] | Not stated |
| Signal | Desk and app | Message request, Report Spam and Block | None; staff never open a chat |
| Twitch | Desk | Username in chat, three dots, Report | Usually nothing |
| Patreon | Desk | "..." on the page or post | Decision details may not be shared |
| Tumblr | Desk | Meatballs menu on the post or blog | Not stated |
| Desk | More, then Report / Block | Reporter not named to the member | |
| Fiverr, Upwork | Desk | Report on the item; Flag as inappropriate | Not stated |
"Not stated" means the help page says nothing either way, which in practice means the reporter should expect silence. A missing outcome is not a failed report; the account in question may still be restricted without any notice to the person who reported it.
How to report a YouTube ad on PC
How to report a YouTube ad on PC, in Google's own wording: while the ad is on screen, click More or Info on the ad, select Report ad, and fill in the Google Ads form that opens. Google's YouTube help page states that "reporting from the ad itself is a feature only available on YouTube mobile and computer", so ads seen on a smart TV or console need the web form instead.
Pause on the ad
Keep the ad on screen. The More (three dots) or Info (circled i) control sits in the ad overlay, next to the Sponsored label.
Choose Report ad
A Google Ads form opens in the browser. Pick the reason closest to the problem, such as a scam, misleading claims or inappropriate content.
Add what the form cannot see
Name the advertiser shown, the landing page domain and the time you saw the ad. Google sends an email confirmation once the report is submitted.
The landing page is what separates how to report a YouTube ad on PC from the phone version. On a computer, hover over the ad's link before clicking it and copy the domain into the description. An ad that redirects through several domains is much easier to judge when the report names the final one.
Google's 2025 Ads Safety Report counted 8.3 billion ads blocked or removed, 602 million of them scam ads, and 4 million advertiser accounts suspended for scams.Google Ads Safety Report 2025, via Search Engine Land, April 2026
How to report an inappropriate ad on YouTube that has already gone: open My Ad Center from the Google account menu, find the ad under recent ads, and choose Report ad there. If the ad is not listed, Google's help page points to the standalone ads policy form, which accepts a description instead of a click on the ad. Blocking an ad is a separate control that only hides it for you; a block sends nothing to Google's review team.
How to report someone on YouTube, or a counterfeit video
How to report someone on YouTube from a computer: open the video, comment or channel, click More, then Report, and select the reason that fits. YouTube says reporting is anonymous and that reported content is reviewed around the clock, but "no amount of reporting" will remove a video that breaks no rule. On a computer, the Report history page shows the status of each report filed.
Report history is the main reason to file YouTube reports from a desk: the phone app does not show it. A channel report covers the account as a whole (its name, profile picture or a pattern of uploads), while a video or comment report covers one item. When the problem is one stolen upload, the copyright route described in our guide to YouTube's copyright removal form carries more weight than a community report, because a valid notice obliges a removal decision.
How to report counterfeit and misinformation on YouTube takes two different routes. Misinformation goes through the normal Report menu, where the reviewer measures the video against YouTube's misinformation policies. Counterfeit goods go through YouTube's counterfeit complaint web form, which only a trademark owner or an authorised representative may file. That form asks for the trademark registration number and jurisdiction, the URL of each video or channel, timestamps showing the sale or promotion, and a signed good-faith statement.
A viewer who bought a fake product from a YouTube link is not the trademark owner, so the viewer's practical options are the in-app Report (for spam or scam content) and a message to the brand, whose legal team can file the counterfeit complaint. YouTube forwards a general trademark complaint to the uploader before acting, which is why brands prefer the counterfeit form for clear fakes.
How to report an app on App Store and Google Play
How to report an app on App Store: on the app's page in the App Store, scroll to the Information section and choose Report a Problem, or go straight to reportaproblem.apple.com in any desktop browser. Sign in, choose "Report a scam or fraud", select the app and describe the problem. Apple added the option in October 2021, according to TechCrunch.
How to report an app on App Store from a PC has one practical condition. Several community reports describe the form asking you to pick the app from your purchase history, which means the Apple Account filing the report generally needs to have downloaded the app at some point. Downloading a free app solely to report it is common, and deleting it afterwards does not remove it from purchase history. An app that copies a brand is a rights-holder matter, and Apple handles it through a separate legal dispute route rather than this form.
Apple says it blocked more than $2.2 billion in potentially fraudulent transactions, terminated 193,000 developer accounts and rejected 371,000 copycat submissions in its 2025 App Store fraud review.Apple, App Store fraud prevention analysis, via BleepingComputer, May 2026
How to report an app on Play Store: open the app's listing, tap More (three dots), then Flag as inappropriate, choose a reason and submit. Google's help page lists the same flag on the Play Store website, under the app's additional information, so the whole report can be filed from a computer. The same menu flags a review left by another user.
Google also keeps two separate forms that the flag does not replace: one for a developer policy violation and one for illegal content, which is the legal route for copyright, trademark or court-ordered removal. A flag tells the review team something looks wrong. A legal notice asks for a decision under a specific law, and Google treats the two differently.
Google says it blocked about 1.75 million policy-violating apps from Google Play in 2025, banned more than 80,000 developer accounts, and stopped 160 million spam ratings and reviews.Google security report 2025, via BleepingComputer and Help Net Security, February 2026
How do you report an eBay listing or counterfeit products?
How to report an eBay listing: open the listing, select the floating question mark on the right side of the page, choose the report option, set the content type to Listing, add the item number and the reason, attach any documents and submit. eBay's help page says to report only listings that break an eBay policy; a purchase problem goes through the Money Back Guarantee claim instead.
The old "Report this item" link now returns a message that the feature is no longer supported, according to several eBay community threads in 2026, and some users say the question-mark icon appears only after scrolling. How to report an eBay listing violation that involves a rule rather than a fake (prohibited items, misleading condition, off-eBay payment requests) follows the same floating-icon path; the reason menu does the sorting. When the listing is a scam aimed at buyers rather than a policy breach, the evidence pack described in our scammer reporting checklist applies on eBay too.
How to report counterfeit products on eBay depends on who files. A buyer reports the listing and opens a not-as-described claim. A rights owner joins the Verified Rights Owner (VeRO) programme and files a Notice of Claimed Infringement; VeRO contacts published on pages.ebay.com include [email protected] and [email protected].
eBay's 2025 Global Transparency Report describes about 75,000 rights owners enrolled in VeRO and around 7.9 million listings removed proactively.eBay Global Transparency Report 2025
How to report counterfeit products in general follows the same split on every marketplace. Vinted's Notice and Action form is open only to IP owners and their authorised representatives, and Vinted states that a counterfeit listing is removed and the account suspended, with repeat cases blocked permanently. A buyer reports the member through the ⓘ icon and Report, and keeps the order claim separate. How to report someone on Vinted for phishing has its own address: [email protected], with screenshots, the member link and any bank details the scammer sent.
Art theft: Redbubble, DeviantArt and itch.io
Art theft is a copyright matter, so the report that works is a takedown notice from the artist, not a community flag. On Redbubble, DeviantArt and itch.io, the artist files a notice naming each copied work and each infringing URL. Every platform here accepts it from a desktop browser, and each may pass the notice, including the filer's name, to the seller or uploader.
How to report art theft on Redbubble: use Redbubble's IP notice form or [email protected], list the URL of every listing (they follow the pattern /people/[user]/works/[id]) and identify your original. MarqVision's 2026 guide reports removals in 1 to 3 business days. The ruling in Wallster v. Redbubble (C.D. Cal., 31 May 2024) is the warning: notices named 3 URLs plus "28+ other infringing listings", only the 3 named URLs came down, and the court held Redbubble was "not obligated to 'investigate'". Our Redbubble infringement walkthrough covers that notice field by field.
How to report someone on DeviantArt for art theft: DeviantArt's copyright policy requires a free account for its form, also accepts [email protected], deletes on a proper notice and applies a three-strike repeat-infringer rule. A stolen copy that has spread beyond the platform, to a standalone shop or a scraper site, needs a notice sent to the site's host; the guide to DMCA takedowns for websites sets out who receives that notice when the site owner ignores it.
How to report an itch io game: scroll to the foot of the game page and click Report. itch.io's announcement lists five reasons (offensive material, uploader not authorised to distribute, miscategorised, spam, other) and a comment box. A full copyright notice goes to [email protected] under itch.io's terms, and itch.io publishes notices at itch.io/takedowns. Creator profiles have no Report link; itch.io users are told to email support. The same notice format reaches complaint and review sites, as the ComplaintsBoard DMCA desk shows.
Games: Valorant, Call of Duty, Steam and Roblox
Game reports are the one area where the PC is the natural desk, because the game runs there. Valorant, Call of Duty and Steam all take reports from the scoreboard or a profile inside the PC client, and Roblox takes them in the experience or on the website. The single most useful habit: report during or straight after the match, while the player is still listed.
How to report someone in Valorant: during a match, press Esc for the scoreboard and click Report beside the player's name. After the match, Riot's support article says to open Career, find the match, right-click the player and choose Report. Reasons include cheating, verbal abuse, hate speech, intentional throwing, inactivity and inappropriate name, and the client tells you if a player you reported is banned.
In Riot's 2020 review, 97% of Valorant players had never been reported, 0.3% had three or more reports, and 53% of cheaters later banned had never been reported at all.Riot Games, Valorant dev blog, Paul Chamberlain, 31 August 2020
How to report someone on Call of Duty: in Black Ops 7, Activision's support article says to open the scoreboard (Tab on PC), highlight the player, choose View Profile, then Report Player; the same profile route works in the lobby. Reports feed Ricochet anti-cheat review. Call of Duty said on X on 9 November 2023 that it "only considers the first report", so filing again on the same player adds nothing.
How to report someone on Steam: open the profile, click the "..." menu and choose Report Player, then pick the reason. Steam's scam FAQ says the reporter is "notified with a message in Steam" when action is taken, and that stolen items are not restored. Fake "I accidentally reported you" messages are a known Steam scam; Valve never asks a reported user to contact anyone.
How to report someone on Roblox: use Report Abuse from the in-experience menu, or from the user's profile on the Roblox website. How to report someone on Roblox for spamming is the same path with the spam category selected. How to report someone on Roblox with proof: an in-experience chat report carries the reported messages to moderators, so file it from the experience where the chat happened, and keep your own screenshots with the username, user ID and time. Our guide on what actually gets a Roblox account banned explains why report volume is not the trigger.
Roblox's EU transparency report for 17 February to 31 December 2024 lists 20,253,498 content removals, 58,522,615 account suspensions and a median handling time of 10 minutes for illegal-content notices.Roblox, DSA transparency report, 2025
Phone-first apps: Hinge, Kik, Lemon8 and Signal
Hinge, Kik and Lemon8 have no desktop Report button: the in-app report is the main route and needs the phone. From a computer, each still has a fallback. Hinge accepts reports through its help-centre request form, Kik's Trust and Safety team takes email at [email protected], and Lemon8 publishes [email protected]. Signal Desktop does carry a Report Spam and Block button.
How to report someone on Hinge: open the profile or the chat, tap the three dots and choose Report, then a reason. Hinge's help centre calls a report confidential and permanent. How to report someone on Hinge after unmatching: Hinge's article on reporting after an unmatch describes a Past Matches list in the Safety Center (Photo icon, then the Safety tab), covering people unmatched in roughly the last 30 days who still have an active account and exchanged at least one message. The list is a limited test, so where it is missing, the help-centre form is the route.
Dating-app reports are where evidence goes missing fastest. Once someone unmatches, the chat disappears from both sides, so screenshot the profile and messages before unmatching or blocking. The same order of steps applies on other dating apps, as the Grindr catfish reporting guide shows for a fake profile.
How to report someone on Kik: open the chat, tap the person's name at the top and choose Report User, then a reason, per UK school safety guidance; Kik's own safety page points to the in-app tool and [email protected]. For threats to share intimate images, report to Kik and to police, and keep the screenshots with usernames and timestamps.
How to report someone on Lemon8: Australia's eSafety guide says Lemon8 has in-app reporting tools and an email route, [email protected]. Lemon8 is built by ByteDance, and eSafety notes that content tied to a linked account can also be reported through TikTok's reporting form. The exact in-app menu path could not be confirmed from an official Lemon8 page for this guide.
How to report someone on Signal: a first message from an unknown number arrives as a message request with Report Spam and Block at the bottom, on the phone and on Signal Desktop. BleepingComputer reported in 2021 that the report sends Signal only the sender's number and a message ID, because Signal cannot read message content. Signal staff never open a two-way chat, so anyone claiming to be Signal support in a chat is not.
Twitch, Patreon, Tumblr, LinkedIn, Fiverr, Upwork and Discord
Creator and work platforms all take reports in a desktop browser, and the report is tied to a specific item more often than to a whole account. Fiverr says outright that "you cannot report a user's entire profile at once", Discord documents no button for a whole server, and Patreon and Twitch both ask for timestamps on video. Report the item that shows the breach.
How to report someone on Twitch: in browser chat, click the person's username, click the three dots and choose Report, then fill in the form; "Report Something Else" covers the username or avatar. Twitch's reporting tools cover streams, VODs, clips, chat and whispers. A stream that uses your music or video needs a copyright notice instead, set out in our guide to reporting a Twitch stream for copyright.
How to report someone on Patreon: logged in, open the creator's page, post, comment or message, click "..." and choose to report. Patreon asks for screenshots, URLs and, for video, a timestamp and transcript. Patreon says decision details may not be shared with the reporter, and a report on an ongoing Live suspends that stream for all viewers and notifies the creator. INHOPE quotes Patreon aiming for a 12-hour turnaround on minor-safety reports.
How to report someone on Tumblr: on desktop, click the meatballs menu (three dots) on the post, or open the blog and use its meatballs menu, and choose Report. Tumblr may ask follow-up questions depending on the violation. Impersonation has its own page at tumblr.com/abuse/non-genuine, and Tumblr's community guidelines allow clearly labelled parody.
How to report someone on LinkedIn: open the profile, click More, then Report / Block, and choose "Report [name] or entire account". LinkedIn's help article says "reported members won't know who made the report". LinkedIn's community report for July to December 2025 says 99.7% of fake accounts were stopped proactively, so most fakes a member reports are the small share automation missed.
How to report someone on Fiverr: report the specific Gig, message, video call, brief or portfolio item. Fiverr's help centre says a whole profile cannot be reported at once, order disputes go to Customer Support, and false reports can bring sanctions. How to report someone on Upwork: use "Flag as inappropriate" on a profile, portfolio, job post or message; Upwork's scam guide lists nine reasons, from payment outside Upwork to five-star review demands. Upwork's 2025 transparency post gives a median report review time of 22 minutes.
How to report an entire Discord server: Discord documents no Report Server button, so report the messages and members that break the rules, each with its message link (Developer Mode, then Copy Message Link). Discord's support article warns against filing duplicate reports or asking a group to report the same content. The content removal service handles the cases where the material keeps reappearing in new servers.
What does the reporter hear back?
Most reporters hear nothing. Of the 24 services here, only Valorant, Steam and YouTube's Report history give the reporter any outcome as a matter of course, and Google's ad form sends an email receipt. How to report an app on App Store is the quiet extreme: Apple publishes no outcome to the reporter at all. LinkedIn, Hinge, Discord and YouTube keep the reporter's identity from the reported account, while copyright desks such as Redbubble, Twitch and DeviantArt may pass the notice to the other side.
Two consequences follow. A silent platform is not proof that nothing happened, so check the content or profile again after a week rather than refiling. And on copyright desks, assume the uploader will see the filer's name: Twitch's DMCA guidelines say the rights holder's name and the filer's name and email are shared with the streamer, and YouTube may share the claimant's legal name with the uploader.
Frequently asked questions
Can I report a YouTube ad I saw on my TV from a PC?
Yes, indirectly. Google says reporting from the ad itself only works on YouTube mobile and computer, so for a TV ad open My Ad Center on the PC with the same Google account and look under recent ads, or use Google's ads policy form and describe the ad, the advertiser name and the time you saw it.
Do I need to download an app to report it on the App Store?
Usually. Anyone working out how to report an app on App Store should expect Apple's Report a Problem form to ask you to choose the app from your purchase history, so the Apple Account filing the report generally needs to have downloaded it once. A free download is enough, and deleting the app afterwards keeps it in purchase history.
Where did eBay's Report this item link go?
eBay retired it. The help page now directs users to the floating question mark on the right side of the listing, where you choose the report option, set the content type to Listing, add the item number and a reason, and submit. Some users only see the icon after scrolling down.
Can I report someone on Hinge after unmatching?
Yes, where Hinge's Past Matches list is available: open the Safety Center from your Photo icon, choose the Safety tab, find the person and tap Report. The list covers roughly the last 30 days and only people with an active account who exchanged a message with you. Otherwise use Hinge's help-centre request form.
Does reporting a Valorant player more than once help?
No. Riot weighs reports from different players and across different games, not repeat reports from one person. Report once per match with the correct reason, and the client will tell you if that player is later banned.
Can I report a whole Discord server?
Discord documents no button for that. Report the individual messages and member profiles that break the rules, each with its message link copied through Developer Mode, and avoid asking others to file duplicate reports, which Discord's support article warns against.
Will the person I report find out it was me?
Not on community reports at YouTube, LinkedIn, Discord, Hinge or OfferUp, which all keep the reporter's identity private. Copyright notices are different: Twitch, Redbubble, Patreon and others may pass the filer's name and contact details to the uploader.
Reported it and nothing changed?
Send the link and what you already filed. The review says which desk still applies, what evidence it accepts and whether a legal notice would reach further than a community report.