To stay safe around sharks, avoid sharks completely while in the water.
Contrary to a ton of Youtube videos and so called experts, you are NEVER 100% safe from ANY predator in the wild! Avoidance is the most effective safety measure as borne out by the recent shark kills in Israel where swimmers are picking on sharks and LOSING their lives. RESPECT fellow apex predators in their home ALWAYS.
Any time you see a shark, slow down, make deliberate moves and leave them alone! You should never interact with sea animals. Their fear of us keeps them alive. Feeding any animal in the wild weakens it and opens a door for infections and conditions them to associate humans with eating (DANGEROUS training for us for sharks to have).
They hunt to live, let them hunt their own food. Notice that Ken was in the cage during the baiting and feeding of those sharks. Predators can lull you into a sense of security that is FALSE. A sandtiger can lunge 2 body lengths in a fraction of a second with 1, ONE, swipe of their tail fin! You are not that fast in the water! No one is.
Don't do what you see guys doing on TV or in videos. They have to sell advertising, so they do things with animals that are not good for them or you. Nature has gotten along with out us forever, so don't think it is up to you to save a shark or play with one!
If you catch a shark, do not pull it backwards or out of the water. Pulling it backwards can damage the gills. If you are not going to eat it but want to release it safely, use a DEHOOKER or cut your line as short and safely as possible and let the hook rust out. Sharks are tough.
And if you are keeping it to eat, get away from it for a while until it wears out or pull it into your cooler or boxed in (Isolated section) of your boat. The man who trained Ken was bitten by a Lemon Shark that had laid in the sun on the deck of the shark boat for at least an hour in the Carolina heat. It rolled up and bit him in the butt cheek. NOT fun! (Though it may have made for a funny video in spite of the injury.)
Sharks can touch their tails with their snouts. The tail is directly connected with the muscles moving the head and gives the shark the leverage to bite you in a fraction of a second.
Holding the tail is the most dangerous thing you can do!
Tips and warnings on this page cannot protect you from being injured. You are responsible for your safety and as stated repeatedly, being in the vicinity of a predator can result in injury. There is no 100% safe situation with wild animals.