There have been a lot of videos circulating recently claiming to show ways of disarming someone armed with a gun. While these videos show techniques which may work, using them carries enormous and often unnecessary risk. If someone pulls a gun on you then they usually want one of two things:
If they just want to kill you then you really have no choice but to use the techniques shown in some of these videos. Evidence suggests that killing someone for no reason is very unlikely and that an attacker is usually after something. Throughout the remainder of this post we will therefore assume that the attacker wants something from you. So just how do you disarm an armed mugger? The simple answer is:
You don't. You give them what they want.
Why risk your life unnecessarily?
Let's say that you're walking through town alone at night. You decide to take a short cut down a dark alleyway. A mysterious figure emerges from the shadows and points a gun towards you. They tell you to hand over your wallet. You recall a video on gun defence that you saw on YouTube. You see that the gun is within your reach. You go for it. BANG. You're lying on the ground in a pool of blood and regret.
Was it worth it? Giving them your wallet would have cost you perhaps some money and the inconvenience of having to cancel your bank cards. Is time and money worth more than your life?
At least some do and that's enough to be wary. It's impossible to give an exact figure because you cannot tell whether an individual gun is loaded unless you're shot or you somehow manage to wrestle the gun away from your attacker.
Really the best defence against a gun is to avoid the situation entirely. Take the usual precautions. Avoid going down alleyways. Stay in well lit public areas. Don't hang out with dodgy people. Simple stuff really. Just use your common sense.
Stay safe.