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Gun safety rules and recommendations are intended to avoid accidental discharge or negligent discharge, or the consequences of firearm malfunctions. Their purpose is to eliminate or minimize the risks of unintentional death, injury or damage caused by improper possession, storage, or handling of firearms. There were 47,000 unintentional firearm deaths worldwide in 2013.

Gun safety training seeks to instill a certain mindset and appropriate habits by following specific rules. The mindset is that firearms are inherently dangerous and must always be stored carefully and handled with care. Handlers are taught to treat firearms with respect for their destructive capabilities, and strongly discouraged from playing or toying with firearms, a common cause of accidents. The rules of gun safety follow from this mindset.

In 1902, the English politician and game shooting enthusiast Mark Hanbury Beaufoy wrote some much-quoted verses on gun safety, including many salient points. His verses "A Father's Advice" begin with the following:

If a sportsman true you'd be
Listen carefully to me:
Never, never, let your gun
Pointed be at anyone...

Ira L. Revees, in his 1913 book The A B C of Rifle, Revolver and Pistol Shooting, stated the following:

Various version of the "Ten Commandments of Gun Safety" have been published. This one is from the Sporting Shooters Association of Australia:

Jeff Cooper, an influential figure in modern firearms training, formalized and popularized "Four Rules" of safe firearm handling. Prior lists of gun safety rules included as few as three basic safety rules or as many as ten rules including gun safety and sporting etiquette rules. In addition to Cooper, other influential teachers of gun safety include Massad Ayoob, Clint Smith, Chuck Taylor, Jim Crews, Bob Munden and Ignatius Piazza.

Jeff Cooper's Four Rules:

The National Rifle Association provides a similar set of rules:

Project Appleseed provides similar rules for their rifle marksmanship clinics:

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