Voluntary organizations of citizens that help competent authorities in the fight against crime are known in many different ways around the world.

It is believed that the first folk squads appeared in England in the middle of the 17th century. At the same time, similar structures were formed in the English colonies in North America. Now in Great Britain there are no national people's squads. First of all, because the country does not have a unified police system. People's squads (they can go by a variety of names) operate under county police forces or even local police stations. The police provide premises for the vigilantes and provide them with training. They do not have any special benefits. Even the right of civil arrest - the ability to detain a suspect, declare him arrested and take him to the police station - is granted by law not only to vigilantes, but also to all subjects of Her Majesty. Similar organizations exist in many other European countries.

In the United States, since 1972, on the initiative of the National Sheriffs Association, the Neighborhood Watch program, funded from the federal budget, was created. The Watch branches operate in all states and in all districts of the country. During the performance of their duties, vigilantes are given the rights of a sheriff, that is, they can arrest suspects, conduct searches and protect the crime scene. Many large police departments in the United States have so-called city watches - organized groups of citizens that act as auxiliary police forces, take an active part in patrolling the streets, and have their own uniforms, weapons and other equipment provided by the police department.

In most countries of Latin America and Africa , attempts to organize voluntary people's militias have invariably led to the creation of "death squads", so civilian formations to assist the police are strictly prohibited there.

In Iran, shortly after the Islamic revolution of 1979, Basij detachments were created, an analogue of the Russian voluntary people's squads. The units are subordinate to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and undergo regular military training. They patrol the streets and ensure compliance with Islamic moral standards. The Basij are equated to the guards of the Islamic Revolution: they have the right to bear and use weapons. During the Iran-Iraq War, the Basij were repeatedly recruited to participate in hostilities.

In Israel, an analogue of the DND is the Civil Guard, a voluntary organization of citizens helping the police. Its main difference from most similar organizations is that it is officially a unit of the Israeli police.

From the Guards to the Basij